Responsible Angling Practice and Fish Welfare

Will our beaches ever be deserted due to a successful anti angling campaign?

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Breaking news !!     - Important Addition to the Marine Bill.

1. All Recreational Sea Anglers have a duty towards the welfare of any landed undersize Marine Organisms so as to increase the chances of those creatures being returned to the sea alive. - The RSA should limit its suffering and also aid its recovery by placement in a suitable container filled with fresh seawater upon landing. The Organism should be returned immedietely to the sea via the container (removal from the container is permitted for purposes of hook removal and measurement only). In Measure and release competitions where undersize fish are recorded before their return, the RSA is permitted to transport the fish (within the container) to the nearest steward for purposes of recording on its way to being returned.
2. Furthermore the RSA has a duty towards the welfare of any landed sizeable Marine Organisms that are not to be retained for culinary or acceptable purposes*. It is recommended that the RSA limits the time of its retention and that the organism is retained, transported and returned alive to the sea via a suitable container filled with fresh seawater.
3. Any sizeable Marine Organisms that are to be retained for culinary or acceptable purposes* must be despatched immediately to prevent any unnecessary suffering.
4. The Law on landing undersized marine organisms does not apply to the deliberate landing and retention of small fish that are to be used as 'live bait' by the angler as long as those organisms are to be used with immediate effect and are not caused any unnecessary suffering during their retention.

    * such as retention for the purpose of bait use.

The above passage is of course purely fictional - and I could have gone on, however, the point is that under the current Common Fisheries Policy (which we are all technically bound to) there is no provision for the welfare of the fish during the time they are removed from their environment. Let me give you an example: - During a meeting with local fishery officers concerning the 'immediate' release of undersize fish, I asked a question - ''Can an undersized fish be returned to the sea via a drop kick'' the answer given by the officer was - ''Legally yes, as long as it was immediate''. - Imagine the public outcry if the same lack of consideration was allowed within the farming industry etc!

Consideration for the welfare of our catch comes under the heading of 'Responsible Angling Practice' (RAP) and without it, will only fuel the impetus of the anti angling brigade. - We are all ambassadors to our sport and therefore we have a duty to how our actions are being perceived by the public.

At the moment, any 'request' for 'RAP' would only be adopted voluntary, which means a percentage of RSA's would carry on with 'bad practice'. If the forthcoming Marine Bill was indeed going to be worth its salt, then passages such as the one above should be included to help the majority of RSA's in their common goal of protecting the future of their sport by united compliance of 'Responsible Angling Practice'.

It maybe that 'RAP' would be ultimately down to policies initiated by the Angling Trust and enforced by way of conditions imposed on the RSA upon the purchase of a Sea Angling License. - If licensing Sea Anglers promoted 'RAP' and helped fund the development of our sport then the cost of a license would become a little more palatable in my book.

Tony Chidwick 09/03/09