Will Gas Prices Effect Fish Landings?

[Capt Sal]

Covid sure did but we still got screwed all the way around! With Covid there were way less people fishing but that didn't count. With the price of gas going thru the roof it has to effect the amount of boats going out for a day on the water. Fill your truck and your boat then stop and buy bait and ice??? How much more will nonethanol be per gall????? Party Boats all have diesel engines and diesel is at least $1 a gallon more than gas ! So when your favorite PB fare goes up take this into consideration.

[bulletbob]

Originally Posted by Capt Sal

Covid sure did but we still got screwed all the way around! With Covid there were way less people fishing but that didn't count. With the price of gas going thru the roof it has to effect the amount of boats going out for a day on the water. Fill your truck and your boat then stop and buy bait and ice??? How much more will nonethanol be per gall????? Party Boats all have diesel engines and diesel is at least $1 a gallon more than gas ! So when your favorite PB fare goes up take this into consideration.

The guys that are regulars and regularly support certain captains and boats will still be there, and pay the price increases.. Its only my uneducated position, but there may be a problem getting occasional, vacationing , first time type anglers aboard... The capts will do their best of course, but they can only eat so much of the fuel price increases... Hoping for the best, but right now its not looking good for anyone- Neither the owners/captains or the guys that want to fish with them.... bob

Commercially no as we just saw when they increased the allowable landings weights per trip. They'll do the same to compensate for higher gas prices and higher operating costs for the commercial sector and increase it again so my guess would be no impact on commercial sector landings whatsoever.

Recreationally, I'm not sure how many people fish really matters because annual harvest and discard mortality are arrived at by a completely arbitrary set of assumptions with no idea how representative it is of fish landed throughout a season by the recreational sector. What history has taught us is that landings will either be very close to the quota or over, I can't remember the last time the recreational sector came in significantly under quota. It's a mythical calculation based on phone calls and questionnaires being sent to random recreational anglers. Their wives and kids could be answering those questions and Marine Fisheries would have no idea. In 2018 we transitioned in quantifying recreational landings and catch from one set of unsupportable assumptions to another system with an even greater set of unsupportable assumptions so I don't see landings changing or being impacted whatsoever.

[tautog]

Look at the November and December government numbers after Sandy for NJ. Virtually no boats in the water and no drop in catch...allegedly

[Capt. Debbie]

I think slightly. Boating is not a poor man's sport. Never was.

Maybe fewer offshore speculation trips? Those for tuna or sharking are real crap shoots early in the season.

The PB'ers might. Their boat fuel costs are definitely going to balloon the PB fares. They will be hit.

[Salt]

I for one will continue to support our PB's

[Flygaff]

Sure will effect my offshore tuna runs

[Pietro]

Id say more overnight trips instead of day trips for offshore stuff. Marine fuel is an absolute SCAM. Why is it equal to the price of Mid Grade at a road gas station? There is NO ROAD wear and tear from boats burning fuel....why does the fuel price reflect a road tax? Absolute Horse crap!

[hammer4reel]

Originally Posted by Pietro

Id say more overnight trips instead of day trips for offshore stuff. Marine fuel is an absolute SCAM. Why is it equal to the price of Mid Grade at a road gas station? There is NO ROAD wear and tear from boats burning fuel....why does the fuel price reflect a road tax? Absolute Horse crap!

They get away with it because NJ dept of transportation is responsible for everything inside the inlets .

That’s also the reason half the lights on the buoys don’t work inside the inlets and rivers .

If they were coastguard maintained they could not charge the over the road tax .

As far as equal to mid grade . It is mid grade you buy in the water , not 87 octane.

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[Gumada]

Fuel is not the most expensive part of my owning a boat. It may cause me to be more frugal when it comes to trips, but I plan on using the boat as much as possible...

That’s if anything is left to catch after the new regulations....only half kidding.