trendsetter
Active Member
So me and a buddy spent the day fishing the southern gulf islands...active pass, north pender up to porlier pass.
The commie seine boats were also out there. We had the chance at one point to be trolling about 500 meters from a seine boat off north pender bluffs around 4pm. This boat, marks a school and drops the net to circle proceeds to mop up a massive school of pinks right next to where we were fishing.
Whatever, they're allowed to fish there just like me but what we saw next is what made me sick. As they pulled in the net and started sorting their catch they start flinging fish over the side like they're garbage. I'm thinking these must have been springs or coho or something they aren't allowed to keep. But these guys are tossing these fish by the tail at least 10 feet off the boat. What do you think the chances are of these surviving? I thought they were supposed to use tanks to revive the bycatch then release them without harm?
Of the 3 dozen or so fish they flung over the side I doubt half of them survived. Just seemed like a gross abuse of the fish stock to me. When we catch something that is not to be kept we take extra care to release them unharmed and with minimal scale loss.
I know DFO can't be watching every boat but we have to do better than that. Should I have filmed them and reported them? Would anyone have done anything about it? I dunno but it was a sad sight to see.
The commie seine boats were also out there. We had the chance at one point to be trolling about 500 meters from a seine boat off north pender bluffs around 4pm. This boat, marks a school and drops the net to circle proceeds to mop up a massive school of pinks right next to where we were fishing.
Whatever, they're allowed to fish there just like me but what we saw next is what made me sick. As they pulled in the net and started sorting their catch they start flinging fish over the side like they're garbage. I'm thinking these must have been springs or coho or something they aren't allowed to keep. But these guys are tossing these fish by the tail at least 10 feet off the boat. What do you think the chances are of these surviving? I thought they were supposed to use tanks to revive the bycatch then release them without harm?
Of the 3 dozen or so fish they flung over the side I doubt half of them survived. Just seemed like a gross abuse of the fish stock to me. When we catch something that is not to be kept we take extra care to release them unharmed and with minimal scale loss.
I know DFO can't be watching every boat but we have to do better than that. Should I have filmed them and reported them? Would anyone have done anything about it? I dunno but it was a sad sight to see.