Recreational groups stand fast on demand for removal of potsPosted by the Asbury Park Press on 08/10/07
BY JOHN GEISER
CORRESPONDENT
Recreational fishermen who want commercial lobster and fish pots off the state's artificial reefs mean what they say.
Thomas P. Fote, legislative chairman of the Jersey Coast Anglers Assocation, said his organization is firm in its position that the pots must go.
"We want the pots off the reefs," he said. "There is no way we can compromise on this."
The state Division of Fish and Wildlife has offered to put regulations in place that would ban pots on the reefs during the summer months.
"That's unacceptable," Fote said. "We want the pots off the reefs 12 months a year."
James A. Donofrio, executive director of the Recreational Fishing Alliance, agreed.
"We're unified on this," he said. "This is not something that we can compromise on. Recreational fishermen want the pots off the reefs, period. We don't want them off the reefs part of the year, and then back on the reefs when the blackfish start to concentrate on them.
"It has been recognized by one administration after another that the artificial reefs are for recreational fishing and diving. They were not built by or for commercial fishermen," he said.
"The money, the effort, the dedication all came from the recreational sector and the state Division of Fish and Wildlife," he said. "If commercial fishermen want an artificial reef for their exclusive use, we have no objections.
"It's a big ocean, plenty of barren ocean bottom that they could build a reef on for their own use, but for them to dominate — in some cases, to confiscate — the reefs that were never intended for their use — is neither fair nor right, and is unacceptable to us," he said.
"That's why we asked that bills be introduced in both the state Assembly and the Senate to prohibit commercial gear on the reefs," he continued. "And, by the way, the law will not stop commercial fishermen from fishing on the reefs like anyone else with hook and line.
"They will just not be able to set pots out that fish 24 hours a day, seven days a week and prevent anglers from fishing the reefs," he added.
Some reefs, such as the Sea Girt and Axel Carlson reefs, are literally covered with a web of pots, lines and flags.
The gear makes it almost impossible for recreational boats to drift fish over the reefs, and, in many cases, even anchor to bottom fish without getting tangled in the gear.
Nearly 90 percent of inshore recreational bottom fishing by private boats was done on artificial reefs in 2000, and 46 percent of party boat bottom fishing effort and 62 percent of private boat diving activity was concentrated on artificial reefs.
More than $10 million in recreational money was spent on reef building in a relatively few years, and anglers have come to rely on the reefs as their keys to good fishing.
Unfortunately, opportunistic commercial fishermen have taken advantage of this concentration of sea bass, blackfish and lobsters, and have dropped more and more gear on the reefs and prevented anglers from using the sites.
Pete Grimbilas, a charter boat captain and member of Reef Rescue, a group dedicated to getting recreational access to the reefs, said anglers are fed up with the situation.
"The issue is simple," he said. "There are too many pots on the artificial reefs. A handful of potters are dominating the reefs, and they're fishing them seven days a week, 24 hours a day."
Grimbilas is concerned that not only are anglers being denied access to the reef system they worked and paid to build, but they are having second thoughts about donating more time and effort to building underwater habitat that benefits only the commercial harvester.
Organizations such as the Manasquan River Marlin and Tuna Club, Greater Point Pleasant Charter Boat Association and the Ann E. Clark Foundation, which have donated $400,000 alone to build reefs in the last four years, intended that the money be used for creating fish habitat and opportunity for anglers, not supporting the commercial fishing industry.
"Recreational fishermen have been reaching into their pockets for years to conserve and protect fish species through reef building," Grimbilas said. "Ninety percent of the money from Mako Mania goes into reef building.
"Barge loads of reef material cost $100,000 each," he stressed. "When it is round concrete pipe it becomes an ideal drift area for fishing for fluke, blackfish, sea bass and other species.
"But the potters move in and set their gear on top of this material, and anglers are denied access," he said. "You can't drift more than a few feet without losing your rig in their gear."
The state Department of Environmental Protection put together an executive summary several years ago of its involvement in reef building, and Grimbilas said the objectives of the reef program should not be forgotten.
He enumerated them as follows: construct hard-substrate reef habitat for marine fish and invertebrates; provide spawning, nursery, refuge and feeding area for marine life; increase diversity and abundance of marine life; create fishing grounds for hook-and-line fishermen; provide underwater structures for scuba divers; and provide economic benefits to recreational fishing and diving industries.
"While trying to meet the objectives of the reef program, DEP's underlying goal in both constructing and managing reefs is to spread the benefits of the reefs among as many people as possible," the summary explained.
"This does not mean a few pot fishermen," Grimbilas said. "This means the tens of thousands of recreational fishermen who want to use the reefs."
Those tens of thousands of anglers are virtually unanimous in demanding more access to the artificial reefs, and they want either the state DEP or the state Legislature to provide it.
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