Originally posted by B Gray:
As someone who is around the commercial industry add who was in it for years, you’re darn right, the commercials are pumping in a lot of money into this. The state of Alaska has put up about five million last year, for this cause. I am sure that this will be funded again this year, at the same level.
I could go on for a long time about how dirty most of the fishing is, As for example, Seining in Puget sound ( Kingston ) in the fall for Coho's and Chums, We would kill about 100 small black mouth every set and toss them over.( They were to small to keep). We made about 6 to 12 sets on an average day. Then you times that by fifty or so ( Boats ),Gee I wonder why the black mouth fishing went in the craper in the ninety’s.
Now let's look at the Bering Sea and bottom fishing. We use to catch about 250,000 metric tons of Pollock in Kodiak alone. During January, Feb, March in the early eighties and by the late eighty's there was barely a fishery, Why?, ( NO FISH ) Why?, Because for every fifty ton tow, we would have fifty ton of discard (DUMPED, WASTED, DEAD, GONE, TOSSEWD OVER). When I started in that fishery, it took only at times, about a ten-minute tow. By the late eighty's, I made tows as long as eight hours and for about twenty tons. ( GEE, I WONDER WHERE ALL THE FISH WENT )
I also thought you might like to know why there are no stellar sea lions, ( THEIR USE TO BE A LOT ), We shot the living #@&% out of them, to the point, that they are having a little trouble right now. (GEE, I WONDER WHY THERE'S NOT MANY )
I could go on and on about this, I have done them all. I have owned and or operated, crab boats, draggers, halibut, gill-netters, seiners and have fished from the Bering sea to Southeast for over twenty years.
I look back and I feel sad about all that and the sad thing is, that it is still happening at some level today.
I kid you not, the money that was made, was enormous and money talks.
Most people don't even have a clue about all this and about the amount of waste. It's sad.
I quit commercial fishing in the early ninety’s and have been in the sportfishing business since then.
The commercials do have money and they spend it in the right places and the states help them out as well AND THEY GET WHAT THEY WANT.
I can guarantee you this, If the price of salmon goes up, There will be less fish for everybody else. Then throw in El Nino and it's hello 90's all over again.
Sorry, I just had to lay it on the line, in black and white.
So are you sad and regretful enough to do anything about it? Are you only speaking up now because you made your fortune on it and now are retired?
It is nice to hear about the sad facts of raping the resource from someone that used to do it (and regrets it), I used to be involved low-level in the logging industry that loved to take down the 6-8 foot old growth trees like no tomorrow..... But I would say that if forgiveness from the Fish-God is what you desire, maybe you need to start taking your confessilnal to the WDFW meetings when they have the open discussion on commercial rule changes..... Then you may just do some redeaming.... otherwise, it is no more than wind........
Respectfully,
MasterCaster
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