Great Laker

http://www.zwire.com/site/news.cfm?n...id=21848&rfi=6

Susan

My overview would have to be: I certainly wouldn't be happy having to, one, pay for a GPS system so the government could track my movements and two, installing a GPS system so I could be tracked like a felon! If the system is implemented I sure would like to be able to hack into that system to find out where the commercial boats are catching all their fish!

Sport fishing industry vs Commercial fishing industry, or if you please, Commercial fishing industry vs Sport fishing industry - which one generates more revenue for the government? Daaahhh Which one is going to buy the elected offical more votes? Daaahhh Now I'm not going to pretend for a moment that the commercial fishing guys aren't getting screwed over by the government more then one way or the other, but they sound like like they are crying about others making more money then them. The last I checked nobody was holding a gun to their heads and said, "take this job or die". But I will say it again, heavily regulated by the government would have to be a real bitch!

__________________

gwstrike

I have seen what these commercial fisherman do to the fishing on LE (Lake Erie), and in various parts of the ocean. If these guys are not controlled by the State or Federal governments, they will fish until everything is gone. Several years ago, We summered East of Conneaut, Just inside PA. The commercial guys would place the nets out about 5-6 miles, and the gill nets would be 1/2 mile - 3/4 mile long. They would catch all the small perch and Walleye. I remember (I'm only 42) when it was remarkable that someone would catch 25 Perch - Walleye fishing on our end of the Lake was marginal at best. The state stepped in and begin regulating these guys, and now you have the premier fishing industry that we now have.
- A couple of years ago I bought a boat from the Port Clinton area, and brought it back by water. I was off of Vermilion, by the Canadian Border, and I witnessed thousands of dead / dying perch on the surface of the water. Were they all about 8" long, then I noticed the nets and then seen the commercial boat. It was a really disgusting site and the commercial guys should be ashamed of themselves for killing all these fish unbelieveably wasteful.
-2 summers ago we had a commercial netter locate in Ashtabula, they set their nets in the Geneva, and Ashtabula area. These guys set so many nets in that area that it was difficult to navigate through. Once again we used to catch Jumbos frequently - that summer and last summer the perching was poor, unless you went to Conneaut.
I have seen similar instances on the East Coast with the Factory ships working the Jeffries Ledges, and on Florida's West Coast on grouper, mullet and snook.
--- To sum it up the commercial guy's equipment is to good and makes him to good of a fisherman, they need to be regulated, if they aren't - their won't be have any fish left for anyone - including themselves. Oceans and Lakes a finite resource, we have to take care of them so our kids can enjoy the same pleasures that we have. No one likes to be regulated, but there normally is a reason for it - in this case I am OK with it - if they all would have abided by the law, it probably wouldn't have been an issue.

RussH

If they weren't caught breaking the rules all the time they wouldn't have to defend themselves. It is a joke how corrupt this group has been over the years, and they are supposed to care about the fishery? From DNR website:

The licensed commercial fishermen and fish wholesale businesses involved allegedly took more yellow perch from Lake Erie than their quotas allowed, filed false reports, and sold unreported yellow perch. Each defendant could face up to 10 years in prison, plus a $25,000 fine if convicted of engaging in a pattern of corrupt activity - a first-degree felony and the most serious of the charges involved.

A list of individuals and businesses charged follows:

Richard Stinson, 41, Castalia - engaging in a pattern of corrupt activity (1 count), money laundering (1 count), theft (2 counts), forgery (2 counts), uttering (2 counts), tampering with records (2 counts), receiving stolen property, (2 counts), and possessing criminal tools (1 count)

Orville Stinson, 66, of Port Clinton - engaging in a pattern of corrupt activity (1 count), money laundering (1 count), theft (2 counts), forgery (2 counts), uttering (2 counts), tampering with records (2 counts), receiving stolen property, (2 counts), and possessing criminal tools (1 count)

Lori Colvin, 41, Oak Harbor - engaging in a pattern of corrupt activity (1 count), money laundering (1 count), forgery (2 counts), uttering (2 counts), tampering with records (2 counts), receiving stolen property, (2 counts), and possessing criminal tools (1 count)

Billy Mitchell, 48, Port Clinton - engaging in a pattern of corrupt activity (1 count), money laundering (1 count), theft (2 counts), forgery (2 counts), uttering (2 counts), tampering with records (2 counts), receiving stolen property, (2 counts), and possessing criminal tools (1 count)

Michael Maloney, 25, Port Clinton - engaging in a pattern of corrupt activity (1 count), money laundering (1 count), theft (2 counts), forgery (2 counts), uttering (2 counts), tampering with records (2 counts), receiving stolen property, (2 counts), and possessing criminal tools (1 count)

Mark Mitchell, 31, Port Clinton - engaging in a pattern of corrupt activity (1 count), money laundering (1 count), theft (2 counts), forgery (2 counts), uttering (2 counts), tampering with records (2 counts), receiving stolen property, (2 counts), and possessing criminal tools (1 count)

Joseph Smith, 36, Sandusky - engaging in a pattern of corrupt activity (1 count), money laundering (1 count), theft (1 count), forgery (1 count), uttering (1 count), tampering with records (1 count), and possessing criminal tools (1 count)

Elizabeth Smith, 43, Sandusky - engaging in a pattern of corrupt activity (1 count), money laundering (1 count), theft (1 count), forgery (1 count), uttering (1 count), tampering with records (1 count), and possessing criminal tools (1 count)

Roy Greene, 45, Vermillion - engaging in a pattern of corrupt activity (1 count), money laundering (1 count), theft (1 count), forgery (1 count), uttering (1 count), and tampering with records (1 count)

Darlene Ernande, 44, Vermillion - engaging in a pattern of corrupt activity (1 count), money laundering (1 count), tampering with records (1 count), and receiving stolen property (1 count)

Vito Ernande, 47, Vermillion - engaging in a pattern of corrupt activity (1 count), money laundering (1 count), tampering with records (1 count), and receiving stolen property (1 count)

Gary Rowan, 54, Painsville - engaging in a pattern of corrupt activity (1 count), money laundering (1 count), tampering with records (1 count), and receiving stolen property (1 count)

Dale Trent Jr., 43, Port Clinton - engaging in a pattern of corrupt activity (1 count), money laundering (1 count), tampering with records (1 count), and receiving stolen property (1 count)

Craig Carr, 39, Oak Harbor - engaging in a pattern of corrupt activity (1 count), money laundering (1 count), tampering with records (1 count), and receiving stolen property (1 count)

Port Clinton Fish, Inc, Port Clinton - engaging in a pattern of corrupt activity (1 count), money laundering (1 count), theft (2 counts), forgery (2 counts), uttering (2 counts), tampering with records (2 counts), receiving stolen property, (2 counts), and possessing criminal tools (1 count)

Smith Fisheries, Inc., Sandusky - engaging in a pattern of corrupt activity (1 count), money laundering (1 count), theft (1 count), forgery (1 count), uttering (1 count), tampering with records (1 count), and possessing criminal tools (1 count)

Westwater Fisheries, Inc., Vermillion - engaging in a pattern of corrupt activity (1 count), money laundering (1 count), tampering with records (1 count), and receiving stolen property (1 count)

State Fish, Inc., Cleveland - engaging in a pattern of corrupt activity (1 count), money laundering (1 count), tampering with records (1 count), and receiving stolen property (1 count)

Lake Fish, Inc., Sandusky - engaging in a pattern of corrupt activity (1 count), money laundering (1 count), tampering with records (1 count), and receiving stolen property (1 count)

cossack

I am a libertarian and believe strongly that people should be free to do as they please as long as they do not infringe on the rights of others.

With that being said though, many commercial fisheries are nothing short of arrogant criminals who care little about the long term damage that they do to our lakes, as well as to themselves. If they are going to rape our lakes of its wildlife, then they should be responsible for the reproduction of every single fish they pull.

Commercial fisherman have a right to profit from their industry, but they also have the responsibility to repair any damage they may cause along the way.