Fishing

COMMERCIAL FISHERMEN REMAIN SKEPTICAL of new rules adopted yesterday by the New England Fishery Management Council that aim to curb overfishing. Above left, Russ Wallis, president of the Ocean State Fishermen’s Association, in Newport last fall.

PORTLAND, Maine – New England fishing officials yesterday approved by a single vote a controversial proposal that will all but require commercial fishermen to manage their fishing hauls cooperatively starting next May, according to The Boston Globe.

Source: Providence Business News

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Eighty-six boats and 300 volunteers from the Rhode Island Saltwater Anglers Association take children fishing Saturday on Greenwich Bay.

WARWICK — The radiance that emerged from fog-enshrouded Greenwich Bay Saturday morning was not from the sun.

Saturday was Take a Kid Fishing Day, sponsored by the Rhode Island Saltwater Anglers Association, a recreational fishing group that promotes saltwater fishing and marine conservation, said its president, Steve Medeiros of Coventry.

Source: Providence Journal

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Among the items before the U.S. Senate this week, as it weighs its own version of the economic stimulus plan that cleared the House last week, is a proposal to add $156.4 million to help transform the Northeast’s commercial groundfishing industry.

More: http://www.pbn.com/stories/40066.html

Source: Providence Business News

When the federal government announced last spring that recreational fishing in saltwater would require a license by 2009, Northeast fishermen vehemently protested.

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Source: Boston.com

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has placed on hold a planned federal registry for recreational saltwater fishermen.

More: http://www.pbn.com/stories/37020.html

Source: Providence Business News

As the state moves forward with the creation of zoning regulations for Rhode Island’s coastal waters, commercial fishermen are worried their interests will not be adequately represented when key....

More: http://www.pbn.com/stories/36295.html

President Bush announced an amendment to Executive Order 12962 to ensure that recreational fishing shall be managed as a sustainable activity in national wildlife refuges, national parks, national monuments, national marine sanctuaries, marine protected areas and any other relevant area under federal authority. This amendment attempts to quell the negative backlash directed toward the Bush Administration in response to the Islands in the Stream and similar proposals calling for the arbitrary closure of vast areas of US waters to recreational fishing.

Source: Providence Journal

The state Department of Environmental Management (DEM) and the Rhode Island Saltwater Anglers Association (RISAA) have launched a group to study saltwater fishing permits. The group is scheduled to hold its first public meeting tomorrow from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. at the Coventry-West Greenwich Elks Club.

More: http://tinyurl.com/6crozs

By Susan A. Baird
PBN Web Editor

NARRAGANSETT – Fishermen, boaters, developers, environmentalists and others interested in the R.I. Ocean Special Area Management Plan (SAMP) project are invited to attend the first meeting of a new stakeholders’ group, which will gather next Wednesday at the University of Rhode Island’s Narragansett Bay campus.

More: http://www.pbn.com/stories/35830.html

Please see the link below linking to a PDF of the May newsletter.