2014 Fluke Regulations

[Angler Paul]

At today’s meeting, the ASMFC voted in favor of regionalized management for fluke in effect reallocating some of New Jersey’s fluke quota and giving it to New York. Further, of the two regionalization plans being considered, they chose the worse one for New Jersey. Under the adopted plan, New Jersey will be in a region with New York and Connecticut. Under this plan we will have a 4 fish bag limit at 18” with a 128 day season. The NJMFC will now only be able to decide when the season will begin and when it will end. Under this plan New Jersey is only projected to harvest 906,348 fluke. If the other regional option had been chosen New Jersey would have had a 135 day season with a projected harvest of 947,337 fluke.
Further the ASMFC disregarded the will of the public. Hearings were held in various states and there was a public comment period where the vast majority of the public opposed the regionalized plans. Additionally, the ASMFC claimed they wanted to have similar sized regulations between bordering states but all they did was shift the problem. Last year New York had a 19” size limit and New Jersey had a 17 ½” size limit despite the fact that they were fishing similar waters. This year both New York and New Jersey will have an 18” size limit. However, Delaware will have a 16” size limit. How is that fair for our boats out of Cape May that fish similar waters?
The little bit of good news today was that the ASMFC voted not to have a closed season on winter flounder. Now we just have to wait for the NJMFC to adopt that measure.
The ASMFC also voted in favor of ad hoc regional measures for sea bass as we had last year.
I am hopeful that since New Jersey under fished its target quota that we might be able to have a somewhat longer season this year but that remains to be seen.


Paul Haertel
President JCAA

[Foul Hook]

Thanks for the info Paul. I made up my mind what I'll be keeping before they told me I can keep.

[Pete]

So, is this really it? No eleventh hour save? No legal challenge to this?

No B.S. I'll make my own rules and regulations. Over the edge now.

I've had it.
We liked to think things were fair. This is a rigged game, with the refs on the take.

To say NY and NJ fishing is the same, Is like saying Peter Luger's and Mc'Donalds are the same because they both sell beef.

This is fisheries managment? Bullshit!

[tautog]

So we can potentially keep 2 winter flounder in the summer now? If so, I will trade that for the fluke season given that I catch more of those than flukies most years.

[Ttmako]

How the F*&k did this happen?
I went to the meeting in Toms River and no one was in favor of this option.
I'm sure many of us reading this submitted comments. Evidently not enough.
We are getting steamrolled and if you look at the trend next year will be down again.
This management scheme is complete and utter BS.
I've tried to cooperate, but this has now gone too far.
This year on my boat, keep whatever you want I'll be flying the pirate flag.
Cant believe i'll be an outlaw.

[Sharkyispy]

One word, PATHETIC.....So, WE THE PEOPLE, means squat to me, stop teaching and preaching it......now....

[Angler Paul]

It is also interesting to note that on page 8 of the addendum, it implied that the season would be from 5/1-9/30. I never bothered to count the days until today but that season would come to a total of 153 days. Yet under the two regional options on page 12 we would have either a 128 or 135 day season. Now we know that the option with the 128 season was chosen. Therefore, I anticipate that since the NJMFC does its best to have the season open on weekends that we will end up with a season from 5/10-9/14 or from 5/17-9/21.

[hartattack]

". . . Further the ASMFC disregarded the will of the public . . . " * * * *
.
* * * * * Now the Public will disregard the will of ASMFC !! * * * *

[Capt Joe]

and...
Our policy will be the same.
If the State of New Jersey wants management laws enforced by our captains and crew we will be glad to abide for a simple fee of $500. per trip. Crew will abide by filet permit laws, boat will not enforce laws unless paid to do so.
Sorry I am in the fishing business not law enfocement.
Cell phones may be banned.

Capt Joe

Like many of us I agree measures had to be taken to help stabilize and save a fishery which needed help. We all did our part and made the sacrifices, even if we didn't completely agree with the regulations, to get the fishery back to where it is today. Now when we should all be reaping the rewards of those sacrifices, government once again steps in and steals what is rightfully ours to harvest. I'm sure, as always, that money and or incompetence are once again in the middle of these decisions and the general recreational fishing community ends up as usual fronting the bill. I'm not one to break the law but I will tell everyone there is no way I'm going to spend the money to fish for fluke and limit myself or my crew to 4 fish when there are more fish around than there were twenty years ago. The population has been rebuilt and is extremely healthy and there is no way a politician is going to take a resource which belongs to the general public away from me and my family. The people who are custodians for our fishery have no vested interest in the resource, our enjoyment of the resource or anything else which accrues a benefit to the recreational fisherman. That being the case, I'm not about to be governed by their own personal greed, agendas and interests which are nothing more then to benefit themselves. Life is simply too short for us to miss out on a sport or hobby which is our God given right to enjoy because some greedy politicians in Washington or well funded lobbyists feel they can manipulate the laws and steal what is rightfully ours. As I said, I have never in my life intentionally broken the law and have always been conservation minded but the time has come to make a statement. And for the people whose lives depend on fishing, some how groups better start getting together otherwise there truly won't be anything left worth fighting for. It's OK to harvest every natural resource we have and ship them overseas so a few well backed conglomerates can make millions but we ourselves are restricted to a 4 fish reduced fluke season because some idiot who probably has never fished with ulterior motives says so..........%$&^ them!!!!!!!!

Dakota