Magnificent Pretty Beach We May Never Fish There Again

[Ross Hunter]

The leader "Your View"

Email amartinez@fairfax.com.au

Dear Sir,

As your long time author of On the Hook a column I have written for the Leader for over 18 years now I would like to challenge the Secretary of National Parks Association Mr GarySchoer

I refer to his letter last Tuesday 24 th Re The marine Parks Issue.headed "FISHING FOR A SEA CHANGE"

WHY DO US FISHERMAN HAVE TO PUT UP WITH PISCATORIAL FOOLS?

Re Mr Schoer's letter of last Tuesday.

Having been an offshore fisherman all my life and the author of the fishing column "ON THE HOOK"in the Leader… It annoys me so much that we are being dictated to by a bunch of fishing illiterates on these Marine Park Issues.. Including closures of fishing areas, affecting all fisherman.

I have fished the Pretty Beach area all my life. I cannot tell you the joy I get from standing on a lonely beach with my sons, just on dusk, enjoying the serenity of this amazing area catching a few salmon or bream… I look forward to the day when I can enjoy the same with my Grandchildren.

Three generations of fisherman breathing in the magnificence of this beautiful, picturesque place.

Well Mr Schoer if you and the Marine Parks advisors, whoever they are and I am most convinced they would not know the difference between a snapper and a crab, have your way, this sacred place, as well as many other popular spots on our coastline will be banned to all fisherman. Why? because the labour party wants green preferences. What about the Fisherman who pays their $25.00 per annum to fish all NSW waters.? There has been no Australian scientific study carried out to prove that closing an area will benefit the migratory fish population. Fisherman, fish to strict bag limits and very rarely bag out on any specie, ensuring stocks for the future.

As a fisherman of 55 years experience and a founding member of the fish-tagging program, it makes me so wild that we have to deal with piscatorial fools like you and your party.

I am sure that every fisherman who wants to enjoy "The God Given Australian Right" to enjoy fishing our coastlines where and when they like, knows who to vote for in March and it will not be labour…It will be the Lib/ Nats.and there are one million of us most unhappy fisherman.

Captain Ross Hunter

Ross Hunter's Gamefishingcharters P/L

Peakhurst

9534 2378

[OWZAT]

G`day Fellas ,

Ok Rossco , So what Do You want us to Do ??

Mick

[Ross Hunter]

G`day Fellas ,

Ok Rossco , So what Do You want us to Do ??

Mick

Mick ,

We just keep on belly aching and writing to the Ministers and the Premier.....let them know that we do not want fishing closures . I will try to attach a great guide for everyone.It is a page from my club The St George Sport Fishing Club's newsletter On how to attack the buggers.

Thanks for your interest.. tHAT DID NOT WORK WILL POST LATER

Ross

[Guest danielinbyron]

The only way out is to completely reject any unacceptable submissions from the MPA.. And do this as local interest groups. Keep copies of all letters and submissions to the MPA , as they must answer and address them all, or fail in there duty to local consultation.

My personal contribution here, Northern Rivers, recently is to get as much info as I can to the SCU , Southern Cross University students and graduates in environemental science and marine biology and get more of the so called Green thinkers on side . So far the response from these groups on the level of support and understanding has been very positive.

I have been circulating some personal submissions re the Batemans Bay park and other data, opening peoples minds to the idea that this Park is a white elephant that doesn't address the real issues such as degredation of our estuaries and a complete inability to police our stock on an international level.

People want to eat locally caught fish, not frozen imports and some of us want to catch it rather than buy it, we pose no threat to biodiversity in doing this , unless we are stripping ledges bare of conge voit and crabs, these problems have already been addressed by fisheries.

No one likes being lied to. If the local community is vocal and rejects the Park as unworkable and unreasonable it can't go through.

Remember they do this through the divide and conquer method making conscessions to each group knowing that once the park is in , expanding it will be easier than establishing it.

It is a highly emotive issue so try and encourage any submissions based on factual impact as apposed to emotional impact. They don't give a toss about how we feel. ie Talk about the cost of a retiree being displaced and moving, so they can fish without driving rather than what a low blow it is.

In the future it will be difficult to deny that there is an improvement in stocks and that that improvement is linked to the measures already undertaken by the rec liscence buyouts etc. They, the MPA will place any benefits on the shoulders of the parks. Although this will be hard to do unless they let pros fish the area as the catch per effort figures are the only actual data they have. But lack of data hasn't slowed them down so far.

[el pescador]

Hi guys,

Long time no post.

Of course the other thing you can do is join the Fishing Party & either run as a candidate in one of the labor seats or at least help out at the polling booths next March, you don't even have to join if you want to help out during the campaign.

I live in Qld but will be down to help my southern brothers in Tweed so that labor gets the message where it hurts most, at the poll.

Les