It is with great dismay that I'm seeing these literal hordes of "recreational" fishers literally overrunning Nth Qld.
Every second vehicle is towing a dinghy with fishing rods protruding. The drastically reduced fish life on the reef is a very depressing sight yet "recreational" fishing is pushed on every TV Channel several times a week. Barbed hooks are still allowed ?? Are our authorities really so disengaged ? Are people really so disengaged ? Recreational shooting which helps keep down the numbers of feral animals is frowned upon yet the killing of marine life is promoted on TV ?
Isn't it time for a very serious mentality check ?

Indyvidual,

Thank you for raising this topic for discussion.
And your concern is understandable. Most of us
Aussies love our seafood. And I guess we just take it
for granted. Not stopping to think about the damage that
could be happening.

The health of both of our commercial and recreational
fishing industries rely on healthy, well-managed fisheries
resources. This not only means the health of the fish species
upon which the industries depend but also on the health
of the fish habitats and or our freshwater and maritime
environments in general - good management is vital.

You've rightly pointed out the fact that the enormous
popularity of recreational fishing can contribute to both over
fishing and the destruction of vital fish habitat.

However anglers can help preserve fish
populations and fish habitats by taking care not to damage
the environment, by understanding and complying with
fishing regulations, by bag and size limits and by taking no
more than they need and quickly returning fish back into the
water.

The trick is to get them to comply.

I'm not an expert on this subject but applicable hefty fines
for any transgressions might help.

The various commonwealth and state fisheries agencies need
to have stronger control and use their powers to stop the
damage being done - or the day may well come when we won't
have the pleasure of enjoying our seafood on our diner tables.

66% of the seafood eaten by Australians is imported.
The industry is worth around 3.5 billion dollars and employs just under 20,000 people.
Fish sources are healthy and 85% sustainable.

Hundreds of foreign boats take fish from Australian waters without being caught, Australian governments preferring to pick on their own recreational anglers, families and kids, rather than developing the balls to deal with foreigners and protect Australia's waters.

The industry is well managed, 7 new species of fish have been discovered this year.

It all depends where you get your information, but anything politicians and dystopian bureaucrats say has to be viewed with suspicion.

I don't f fish, but the people who do, for fun and food, should be left alone.

Indyvidual,

I agree. You’ve highlighted a massive double-standard there.

Just imagine the outcry there would be if people used a big barbed hook to reel in feral (let alone native) land animals in similar proportions!

I guess the visibility and cuddliness that fish lack compared to land animals makes us feel like it’s okay.

Totally agree with you Indy, you have highlighted something that is a problem. In NSW there is that nut job political party The Shooters, Hooters and Fishers Party (whatever there current name is) who advocate for total destruction of wild life by their hoons and goons supporters! No joy for what you want when the LNP wins office here in Qld next month.

My point is, what is so "recreational" in catching fish & disrupting the breeding cycles ? For fun ??
Yes, officially there are size & bag limits & protected species but reality as witnessed by myself showed that more fish are badly injured & killed than are being brought back as shown in trophy photos. The reason for this are barbed hooks & size limits & plain human greed. There are people who use several lines at the same time & I'd like to have it explained how watching three or four lines whilst holding a rod is "recreational ?
Fish a centimetre shorter than the size limit have their throats ripped out by the barbed hooks & "released" whilst already more dead than alive with no chance to survive & breed.
Why on earth the Environmentalists & Greens & animal lovers don't argue for a ban on barbed hooks is beyond me. GBRMPA & Fisheries seem to not show any leadership in this either.
Believe me when I tell you that fish stocks on the reef are seriously low. Even protected reefs lack fish life in comparison to what we saw 40 years ago. Pollution obviously plays a part in that also. Mass tourism in the 80's & 90's saw the imact of sun screen lotion on the reef & that resulted in the drop in visitors to the reef.
Simply banning barbed hooks would almost instantly improve marine life ! Recreational fishers could simply squeeze the barb with pliers & that alone would save thousands of fish ! Stop importing barbed hooks !

OH no. Someone's having fun.... well that's gotta stop.

Indyvidual brought this up some time ago. I wonder if fish stocks have dwindled since then, or the “hordes” of boats and rods have increased or decreased. Are they “literally” overrunning North Queensland. ‘Literally’ means that they actually are, and that's doubtful.

Barbless hooks? That won't necessarily cut down the number of fish taken. I'm advised that it's all about ‘tension’, no great skill needed, and you will catch just as many fish.

Worried about the fish's feelings? Given the lack of feeling ‘authorities’ have for their fellow human beings, that's not a problem.

In his follow-up post, Indyvidual falls back on effects on “mass tourism” and “sun lotion” on the GBR, the usual BS that has been debunked by people with actual facts and evidence.

It's all something to whinge about, making people feel miserable, and trying to do them out of a bit of fun, the pleasure of eating something they caught for themselves, and enjoying the country they are lucky to live in.

Having fun at the expense of other creatures - who in this
case don't have a voice or rights?

I think many would disagree.

Without being fanatical about things - perhaps the word
that we're looking for here is - moderation.

My father used to love trout fishing. He loved being
out in natural habitats. But that was a long time ago.
I'm not sure how he'd feel in today's over-populated
world. Whether he's still be able to find the peace
and solitude that made him so happy.

The area Indy is talking about is his back yard, and he has every right to be concerned about its environment and nature.

Indy,

I can only speak for the Greens NSW, they have over the years fought tooth and nail on environmental issues, as Shooters and Hooters have tried to leverage the state Coalition Government (before Labor was elected) to get exemptions for their members, such as 4WD hooning in national parks, unrestricted gun use for recreational purposes. One of their leading supporters was filmed illegally shooting several wombats on a country property. Let them into North Queensland and see what they will do with the GBR!

I wonder if fish stocks have dwindled since then
ttbn,
Let me put it this way. The places we dive for the past 40 years are now desert like insofar as fish population goes. That is a clear indication that fish stocks are dwindling ! From being surrounded by schools of fish to having to swim after a couple just to look at them pretty much confirms that.
Barbed hooks need no further explanation to what I remarked on earlier.
Just Google Countries which banned barbed fishing hooks. It's time for a re-think ! This has nothing to do with being some raging environmentalist etc, it has to do with a more considerate mentality towards anything that can do without killing the goose that lays the golden egg just for "recreation" By all means go out & relax & catch a couple of fish to take home but wholesale slaughter is what ruins it for all ! "recreational" fishing has become a massive industry & "releasing more than half-dead fish is no longer an acceptable practise ! We see people sneaking into protected zones at night catching commercial quantities & that's just no longer tolerable.

Won't somebody please think of how this affects the cats!!
http://tiny.cc/cjdkzz

Mr Trumpster,

Cats are one of the most destructive feral animals there is. In my area they are wiping out the Blue Tongue Lizards, not to mention the native bird population. Gee, is your Donald a cat? A destructive feral animal, me thinks so. There should be a cat eradication program!

Went out for a relaxing mornings fishing on the bay with the lads, quite time, was hoping to land a couple of Brim for the pan. Nothing was biting, rather boring, got it on video.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dRJd1f8s4bU&t=76s

No participants in any activity will ever admit let alone even attempt to see any negative aspects of their pursuits.
That's normal but it still does not prevent negative outcomes. "Recreational" Fishing is one of the more damaging to the waterways & seas. In some areas such as the GBR it out-strips commercial activities since commercial fishing has been rolled back substantially.
The numbers of fish taken home is often less than the number of fish left to die because of being undersized or the wrong fish etc. Fishers don't see what's going on below the surface & I suspect most don't even give it a second thought.
There's much talk & rightly so about excessive fire power in the gun debates yet no mention ever about "recreational" fishing gear. Some of the fishing gear is akin to heavy artillery on land.
All I'm saying is please be more considerate & start with using barbless hooks & support the ban for barbed hooks !

“Recreational" Fishing is one of the more damaging to the waterways & seas. In some areas such as the GBR it out-strips commercial activities since commercial fishing has been rolled back substantially”.

Is there any proof of this?

“The numbers of fish taken home is often less than the number of fish left to die because of being undersized or the wrong fish etc.”

Is there any proof of this?

Just as “No participants in any activity will ever admit let alone even attempt to see any negative aspects of their pursuits”, neither will those with a pet hobby-horse let up.

I suggest that, if this situation was really as dire as claimed, our increasingly tyrannical governments would have no trouble in putting a stop to it.

It makes sense to use barb-less hooks in places where there is a high chance of an undersized catch. Maybe townsfolk can sell low priced barb-less hooks on card tables at fishing spots to help with this. Hopefully people act responsibly rather than having to create authoritarian laws to manage behavior. Many people are perhaps too lazy to attach a different hook to their line, or don't know how. At fishing spots you see a lot of fish dying on the ground or in the water.

There are too many people in the world, from too many cultures, all wanting to do their own thing, and not wanting to listen to anyone else, creating one big pile of lifeless mud

Is there any proof of this?
ttbn,
Yes, for those who can accept it ! Do a dive trip out of Cairns & ask to visit those "world famous" dive spots "teeming" with Marine life. Let me know if you think you got your money's worth ! Same with the fishing charters. Like a frequent fisher who used to go to Cape York for several years in a row. When he flew out from his last trip he said "they were the most expensive sandwiches" he ever got because sandwiches was all he got & he hasn't come back since I was told ! Even the fishing charter operators have moved on.
Those beautiful UW photos shown are from 40 years ago !

Indyvidual

I can't even swim, let alone dive.

I'm talking about proof from people who know what they are talking about: not anonymous anecdotes. If you want people to believe what you say, you must produce the evidence.

Remember Peter Ridd. After that fiasco I wouldn't believe any stories about the GBR without scientific proof.

Indyvidual take it easy on ttbn- he's based in South Australia from memory where the population has shrunk by half in the last thirty years. Where as Queensland's population has quadrupled or something. The Gold Coast is bigger then the whole of South Australia's population. And there's another Gold Coast north of Brisbane. I think Cairns Airport is as big as Adelaide Airport.

Ttbn see's the problem from a different perspective, but he would probably agree that world population is a problem, on a number of levels.

But just because fish are down in certain areas, doesn't mean they are everywhere, and that the scale of the coral bleaching conspiracy is real.

The forums number one "cooker" is sprooking conspiracy theory again...this time its the "coral bleaching conspiracy". Next thing you know he'll be telling us all those fish are Woke Marxists.

He got one thing right, the old hick from SA, he wouldn't have a clue about the real Australia.

wouldn't believe any stories about the GBR without scientific proof.
ttbn,
That's a call that can't be answered. Peter Ridd says one thing & the other scientists say another. So, here we have scientists from two sides & we still don't know which scientist is actually right.
Proof is always from the side that rakes in the most funding or at least that's how it looks in such debates.
I watch fishing charter boats on a daily & sometimes even hourly basis & for the past five years I haven't seen a single fish being reeled in. "Should have been here yesterday" or "tomorrow should be much better" are two most uttered sentences in those circles. The operators have no qualms conning the unsuspecting tourist out of some good Dollars whilst fully well aware that no fish will be caught because there hardly are any fish left & those that are swim around with sore mouths & doin't feel like biting for a while !
As far as I can observe, there are no opportunities only opportunists exploiting the gullible !
There are a few operators who now encroach on remote areas to make one more stab at some Dollars by advertising "untouched fishing grounds" ! No consideration being given for the long term. Nothing in nature seems to be off limit for "recreational" fishing.
The one fortunate dent in this exploitation is the SE Tradewinds & if it weren't for that the GBR would be like an old quarry by now !

If a call for proof "can't be answered", then we are back to OPINIONS. You can have whatever opinions you like without proof. What will be will be. We are running out of fish - or not. The GBR is stuffed - or not.

My opinion is that the reef is OK. I know that we import most of our seafood; I don't know if that's because we are running out of fish, or it's because of unfair, stupid laws by Australian governments who are a) incompetent, b) just plain nasty, or c) have made some agreement with global interests.

Not matter what, there is sweet FA I can do about; there's sweet FA you can do about it, Indyvidual; and there is sweet FA chance that Australian governments can do anything about it, and sweet FA chance of them telling the truth about it.

And, I note, that the complete waste of space, Paul 1405, continues to make useless ad hominem attacks on other posters without any reference to the actual topic. He has always been a nasty little tosser, but he is getting worse as his brain keeps deteriorating.

then we are back to OPINIONS.
ttbn,
Most definitely not ! We are looking at facts. Fact one is the recreational fishing industry is huge as is reef research & they're opposing due to fact two which is income protection !
I can't prove that recreational fishing particularly with barbed hooks is highly detrimental to the ecology of the reef because those who see it refuse to acknowledge it or more to the point they can't afford to acknowledge it. Peter Ridd is an example of that except that he referred to the Coral & not the fish stocks. There is a lot of new Coral growth but no growth in fish numbers.
So you see the problem is again greed & selfishness but hey we can't say that !
Some of the smarter reef tourism Nations have even banned the use of sunscreen lotion. I drew attention to those chemicals 45 years ago & I'm chuffed that some authorities think along the same lines even if it is on the other side of the World !

Why won't you present evidence of these "facts", or at least refer to what you think is evidence so that people can view it for themselves?

ttbn,
As I stated earlier, the evidence is there for people to look at & if they can't go there they should take note of people who do.
Let's see how many OLOer's actually know the reef instead of just believing the fishing shows on TV !
In order to support a ban on barbed hooks one just needs a sense of responsibility & common sense ! Throw in a couple of ounces of healthy mentality & the ecology will show us an improvement within a couple of seasons !

Indyvidual

No. That’s not the way it works. Claims such as yours have to be shown to be correct by accredited people and be peer reviewed. Anyone, especially anonymous people, can't expect their audience to simply believe them.

This sort of subject is best left to qualified and publicly recognised professionals who can explain the how and the why of the conclusions they came up with.

Personal anecdotes don't cut the mustard.

The point is that we are animals.
And to live, and continue living, we must consume living material.
Both plant and animal, as we must have animal protein.
Like it or not, we must consume some part of an animal.
Life abounds around us, for us to use.
It must, or we wouldn't be here.
But it is not inexhaustible.
So we must draw on it wisely.
This means taking what we must have, but also in assisting animal and plant life to flourish.
In that way we can replace a lot of what we use.
Indiscriminate destruction of animal and plant life does not assist us.
Because the world is already seriously overcrowded, we need to become very efficient at using our diminishing food resources.

No. That’s not the way it works.
ttbn,
I know that this is how it has been for too long & I for one don't want to continue along those futile lines. Ipso Fatso gets it as do several others. Destroying fish stock for entertainment is wrong as is the fatal maiming by using barbed hooks !
Is really too difficult for people to admit that what's happening is wrong ? In the late 80's we had school teachers stationed in our area & quite a few locals who targeted an annual Jew fish breeding congregation for about five years in a row really heavy. In the sixth year & ever since, Jew fish don't use the spot anymore. There were full ute loads of the fish taken to the local dump because they couldn't give away enough to prevent them from being dumped. If anyone can explain the "recreational" part in that please do so ! At a northern river "recreational" fishers from Cairns put nets right across the river mouth & I don't think In need to explain how that worked for several years of being done ! Crocodile Danger signs being souveneered or holes shot through them or untalented redneck graffity artists doing their thing on Aboriginal land signs ! Do I need to go on ?
I don't think so but the impact on the marine ecology up North will be noticable for years yet !

Indyvidual,

Perhaps you don't understand what I've said, so I shall accept your opinion on the subject and move on.

I have found in my life that there is no point in fussing over things you can't do anything about.

All I can suggest is that you take your views to people who might be able to do something about it. However, these days you are unlikely to get even an automated acknowledgement from people misnamed 'elites', let alone any action.

An established pastime is difficult to change.
People have been fishing for as long as we have existed?
So it is difficult to change that habit.
But the world today is not the world of yesterday.
Today we must think more of the future, or there will be no future.
As I said before, the world is already overcrowded.
We cannot go on indefinitely using our resources so wolfishly.
Whole species in the animal kingdom die out when there is lack of food.
We will too, if we go on lavishly using everything we can instead of only that which we need.
The time to make logical changes is now, not tomorrow.
Unfortunately it takes time for community thinking to catch up with reality.
But it will. It must. Or future generations will suffer.

People have been fishing for as long as we have existed?
Ipso fatso,
Yes and, there's no reason to stop. Just take less & don't use barbed hooks ! is that really so much to ask to prevent the disruption of breeding cycles?
I recall asking a schoolteacher why he catches so much fish & his reply was "I need to get back the money I spend for petrol on the boat" ??
The indigenous ladies sitting on the shore, throwing hand lines into the water are the true "recreational" fishers. They chat & when they have enough to feed the family they go home.
The well-paid people are the ones who go out with thousands of Dollars worth of gear & rejoice when a big fish "Wow, what a sporting fish" is fighting for its life in front of cameras to show off their blatant disregard for the ecology ! And, when an area is literally fished out a new one is lined up for the same fate !

My wife's Maori people when there is a special thing on are allowed to "fish" for as much as they like, and its always shared, with nothing wasted, they never take more than required. Taking too much is considered bad. Yet many Pakeha will fish all day when the fish are biting taking too much for their needs.

"The point is that we are animals".

When you read rubbish like that, you know that you are among nutters. Anyone who calls human beings 'animals' is a nutter.

these days you are unlikely to get even an automated acknowledgement
ttbn,
Yep, you're correct on that !

ttbn, as an egg no one should think of you as an animal.

Whatever some may think, we are part of the animal kingdom.
Those who say otherwise are entitled to their view, but the truth is stark.
I consider that we are a very evolved and advanced form of animal.
In fact, most of us are almost human.

A "Sport fishing" guide was asked if he thought more sharks move closer to the shores because of lack of food for them due to over-fishing. "Yes' he answered. Considering he is one of the most impactful himself on the rivers & reefs of Nth Qld. it's disappointing he wasn't asked about his contribution !

Just found this, makes sense to those who care !

https://www.youtube.com/watch?app=desktop&v=VWo5fWbgGwI

IF

You want to identify as an animal? Go for it. Men identifying as women. Women identifying as men. Young girls identifying as cats.

It's highly fashionable these days, and if will continue until the next mad fad comes along.

What if I identify someone as a threat ? What action am I allowed to take if I identify myself as a likely possible victim ?

Rather interesting that not a single Green entered the discussion !

Spoke with a keen recreational fisher yesterday & he was quite agreeable to using barbless hooks for the sake of causing less kills do to hook injuries to fish. He also made a valid point that fishing in remote area with barbless hooks would also greatly reduce hook injury to fishers themselves as the hook could very easily be removed without the barb !
It's a clear win, win ! All that's needed is to work on the mentality !

Indyvidual

"Single" Green. As far as I am aware, there is only a single Green here. If there are more than the one, they are either too embarrassed to admit it, or cunning, unlike the one we know who is definitely a fully paid up Green, or says he is. And nobody would lie that they were part of such a extremist mob, surely?