Have a look at this and let us know what you think

New angling rules could destroy tourism

By TOM GILMORE
NEW fishing rules signed into law in the dying days of the last Government are anti-tourism and anti-angling according to people involved in fishing in lakeland areas of Ireland.
Irate anglers around Headford, on the shores of the republic’s biggest lake Lough Corrib, and nearby Lough Mask, say the new laws which restrict or ban the use of live bait such as mayfly or worms must be repealed or else an even more bitter campaign than the rod licence row will be waged.
“Many of the guest house owners, and other businesses along Lough Corrib and Lough Mask, in places such as Headford or Oughterard and Cong in Mayo will be put out of business if this law is not changed,” says Vinny O’Reilly from Headford who was to the fore in the bitter anti-rod licensing row from 1987 to 1990.
The most contentious line in the new legislation states that “it prevents the use of any lure, other than artificial fly in angling for any kind of fish with rod and line”.
“The businesses around the lakes are dependent on angling tourists coming here trolling for salmon, trout or coarse angling as well as fly fishing. But if they can’t fish for pike or salmon with the traditional bait or lures then they won’t come to this country any more,” says Vinny.
The retired teacher, now in his mid-70s, was among those who waged, and won, a campaign against the proposed rod licence law in the late 1980s, and he is willing to campaign again unless this new law is scrapped.
“During the anti-rod licence campaign I remember one day when two Gardai arrived in the classroom to question me about some alleged intimidation incident, involving others.
“We were all passionate about standing up for what was right at that time and anglers now will not accept the sneaky way this was signed into law during the last days of the outgoing Government,” he added.
He is a member of the Headford and Corrib Anglers Association as is his neighbour Mike Monaghan who says the new law is in danger of “reigniting the anti-rod licence row”.
Mike says that many anglers don’t even know about this new law yet as it was only signed by the outgoing Minister of State, Conor Lenihan, on February 24 and was first published in the Government’s Iris Oifigiúil on March 1.
He added that this could be even more contentious than the rod license row and it is shaping up to become similar to the controversial banning of stag hunting.
“We as anglers are very conscious about caring for the environment and the eco- systems but now they are telling us how they want to regulate our eco-system.
“The hospitality industry, particularly in the West is faltering and while we could rely on an influx of anglers every year between February 15 and September 31 but if this law is allowed to stand this much needed revenue will disappear from the shores of Lough Corrib and many other lakes around Ireland as well,” says Mike.
He added that if new rules preventing the use of the Mayfly, grasshoppers, , crickets etc becomes a reality it will also sound the death knell for children learning to fish.
“There will be no more family days on the lakes of Ireland and that is how we all started to get interested in angling. How can the children of today get interested in angling the same way that we did if they can’t use live bait?
“The use of live bait is something that can be done by everybody from the novice to those in the higher echelons of angling and to restrict it to the use of artificial bait only, is ridiculous. I refer to the busiest time on the lakes, the Mayfly Season” says Mike.
He added that it was only by chance that veteran Galway city angler Frank Moran saw a small notice in a national newspaper about the new law and that is what alerted the anglers to the changes. But many anglers, including senior figures in angling in Ireland are not aware of the changes according to Mayo boat builder and PRO of the Trout Anglers Federation of Ireland, John Paddy Burke from Ballinrobe.
He says that only a few people in the Trout Anglers Federation of Ireland, which is recognised by the Government as the governing body for trout anglers here, have yet become aware of the changes.
He says that many members of the Inland Fisheries Association of Ireland, the new authority that has replaced the Fishery Board, were not aware of the changes up to last weekend.
“Even the Chairman, Brendan O’Mahony from Cong, was not aware of the new law when I phoned him last Thursday.
“At least six regulations in this document must be deleted immediately and we will be telling this to the new Taoiseach Enda Kenny when we hope to meet him about this and other restrictions imposed on fishing,” he said.
He added that another ridiculous rule is the one that restricts the number of pike that an angler can take out of lakes such as Lough Corrib to two.
“This rule is crazy while at the same time there is no law that states you can’t take as much fish as you wish out of the country. Having that sort of a law would be a better way of solving that problem,” says John Paddy Burke. He added that the Trout Anglers Federation of Ireland hope to meet with Taoiseach Enda Kenny “as soon as possible” regarding changing many aspects of the new rules signed into law by Conor Lenihan before he left Government.
While the prohibiting of any lure other than artificial fly is probably the most contentious aspect of the new law John Paddy Burke has pointed to five other aspects of the new law that must be changed.
These include a section, which states the prohibiting of fishing, or attempting to fish, for bass, which John Paddy says, is also an “anti-tourism” measure. He says the section which refers to the prohibiting of angling with rod and line in specified waters could give wide ranging powers to the legislators to stop people fishing in rivers such as the Clare River in Co Galway, if they wished.
According to John Paddy a lot of anglers use worms when fishing in this river, and in similar well-known fishing rivers around Ireland, and if visiting anglers can’t use this type of bait then they will stay away from Ireland. A section in the new law prohibits the taking of salmon and sea trout by means of rod and line, prohibiting the use of any fishhooks other than single barbless hooks and “a prohibition on the use of worms as bait in angling in specified waters”.
Another offending section, according to the anglers, is the one which refers to “prohibiting the taking, killing or having in possession a fish taken by rod and line and hooked other than in the mouth”.
The reference to prohibiting or restricting trolling, (with rod and line from the back of a boat) would impact badly on anglers such as Mike Monaghan who suffers a physical handicap due to severe back problems and is restricted to only a few angling methods, mainly those defined as restricted by the bill. Many such anglers, some who may be in wheelchairs, could engage in this form of angling up to now in specially converted boats, but this could also end if the new laws are allowed to remain in place.
In recent years all angling clubs have voluntarily employed best practices by extending the size of fish caught to 13 inches. They have also introduced a bag limit while many clubs run catch and release competitions where all fish caught are released safely back into the lakes.
But while the anglers are now angry at the new law, particularly those in the West, they are hopeful that the new Government of Fine Gael and Labour will scrap this law enacted in the final days of the last administration. Otherwise another campaign, as bitter as the anti-rod licence one could be on the cards with anglers from all over Ireland taking to the picket lines.