Why are we fishing for an almost extinct species?

[Highwater]

My question is this, i wonder daily if i should give up fishing as really no angler should be fishing for a fish when theres only a handful in the river, catch & release! Time is surely to stop fishing and exploiting the last few fish all together and give them a number of years to recover! It now feels like searching for a needle in a hay stack, i think all anglers need to take a long hard look at what it is they are doing to the environment. If it wasnt for fishermen the rivers would be heavily polluted and totally devoid of life, we as anglers can still walkthe river bank and check for such incidents and also enjoy being by the river without tormenting the handful of fish now swimming our rivers.
Im probably the only one on here with this mindset but i think its time we all thought like that. And i find it hard as a youngster(30yo) to the sport to support some older peoples thoughts on fish conservation is so big in the agenda now, dont forget it is your generation that killed everything that was caught pretty much and dont have any remorse for it, were not hunter gatherers anymore! Its all about enjoyment, how can anyone get enjoyment from catching the one and only fish in the river i cant contemplate

[Willies62]

Been there and said it last year. Why fish for these, especially early fish, just to put them back. It's akin to beating up a marathon runner 10 miles into their race and expect them to carry on to the end. This is the last season of buying a salmon licence.

[grey duster]

Maybe you are right HW.The way it is going,sewin are probably next to be threatened.I am one of the people that killed way too many fish years ago,and looking back now,feel ashamed.In those days it was the norm to compare your catch with other anglers on the banks and gloat.Little did I know it would come to this.

[T7]

You say anglers are the only reason the rivers aren't sewers. What would happen if we all stopped fishing and there was no one keeping an eye on them? I think the sea trout stocks are in reasonable shape based on the rivers I fish

[Teifi-Terrorist]

If you think there are poaching issues on the river now, HW, then you can only imagine what would happen if there was no angler presence at all...

Pollution too; at least we are able to monitor and report by being on the river/s.

Think about the local communities too and the effect closing the fishery would have on them. Needless to say the angling clubs that have been around for decades would cease to exist.

As always, a sustainable approach is what's needed and that is long overdue. Let's hope something meaningful appears from NRW for next season - I, for one, have plans to make this so.

To add to this, however, I must highlight how your post is slightly overshadowed with a sense of irony, HW, given how your entry to the LlAA photo competition (2015, I believe) was of a salmon and a large sewin caught and killed the same day from the river. Both laid side by side next to your rod. With this being just two seasons ago, is it not a case of the pot calling the kettle black?

TT.

[Highwater]

We can all keep an eye on the river by walking it and more modern monitoring techniques i still enjoy a walkdown the river i like to look at the river from vantage points as i drive past in my car, that helps to keep an eye on the river. Yes tt you a re correct i did have 1 salmon and one sewin on tge bank but that season i caught upwardsof 50 fish and was a particularly bumper year for me, i believe i did despatch less than a handful from a few different river systems, so my aporoach was within reason that season, by the way i dont eat fish i only take a few fish when they are plenty in our systems for friends and family and are always eaten fresh. Last season was terrible and my approach was different this season again has started particularly terrible in the system, with the ongoing pollution effects and everyother enviromental issue migratory fish face we as anglers arent making a huge impact however we are making an impact on fish survival rates even with c&r and when there are so few fish in the system they need to be given time & pristine conditions in which to spawn and left alone to recover for a number of years with no angling or netting threats.
That would sadden me but it seems time for the teifi and towy systems for big change, anglers are capable of traveling to a river system that can support the angling pressures.
Fishing shouldnt be about money in anyway shape or form.
Hopefully the fish stocks just pick up again but seems a but if a miracle at the moment, angling clubs need to be doing more on the sewrage pollution issue, i witness slurry being spread in fields directly next to major rivers

[Teifi-Terrorist]

angling clubs need to be doing more on the sewrage pollution issue, i witness slurry being spread in fields directly next to major rivers

Hi HW,

I see this as very much an issue everyone needs to address, not just committees of angling clubs. We all have a role to play, so please don't just think someone will do it for you. On that note, assume you have been reporting what you have witnessed?

Beyond that, you obviously think what certain angling clubs are doing is insufficient, so perhaps share with us what you think they are currently doing and what they should be doing instead or in addition to address the issue in your view?

Thanks,

TT.

[Highwater]

I have personally been on the phone to porth reporting to llandysul angling club to report incidents if pollution on teifi, i have phoned the local mp i have also phoned the conservative goverment in relation to tuffer penalties And what's going to happen after leaving the EU regarding fishery management and conservation, i have phoned the nrw and the ea regardibg their lack and complete waste if time with the services they provide, i have told them and The government of the nrw and ea need to be scraped and replaced with something new and better that actually cares about the environment.
Let me assure you i am a nobody in the eyes of of the organization, I am merely a pin prick in their sides for five minutes, i'm not a doctor, scientist a lawyer or club chairman i have no clout with my words unlike these people mentioned,
What are clubs doing in regards to pollution? Why are fines so cheap the farmer is financially better off paying the fine of £5000, that's no deterrent, if the fine was to take your farm and place it in government hands i.e sell it, not one pollution incident will happen by farmers I'm sure. Why are clubs not fighting for toughr penalties?

[Teifi-Terrorist]

I have personally been on the phone to porth reporting to llandysul angling club to report incidents if pollution on teifi, i have phoned the local mp i have also phoned the conservative goverment in relation to tuffer penalties And what's going to happen after leaving the EU regarding fishery management and conservation, i have phoned the nrw and the ea regardibg their lack and complete waste if time with the services they provide, i have told them and The government of the nrw and ea need to be scraped and replaced with something new and better that actually cares about the environment.
Let me assure you i am a nobody in the eyes of of the organization, I am merely a pin prick in their sides for five minutes, i'm not a doctor, scientist a lawyer or club chairman i have no clout with my words unlike these people mentioned,
What are clubs doing in regards to pollution? Why are fines so cheap the farmer is financially better off paying the fine of £5000, that's no deterrent, if the fine was to take your farm and place it in government hands i.e sell it, not one pollution incident will happen by farmers I'm sure. Why are clubs not fighting for toughr penalties?

HW,

honestly, what power do you really think angling clubs have? We are like you; individuals! We give our time freely and as best we can, we are not the answer to everything I can assure you, but we do the best we can.

What good do you think reporting an incident to the Porth and the angling club would do? We cannot do anything more than you! Yes, we attend meetings, we lobby, we fight the corner, but at the end of the day everyone needs to stand up and fight, not just rely on angling clubs and a handful of individuals to sort out the myriad of issues our river and many other rivers are now facing.

Please use your energy wiser and contact NRW, local AMs, MPs, NFU etc. with your obvious passion as I can assure you trying to point fingers at your angling club will achieve nothing but ill will.

TT.