Bass in the Bay… Bob Signorello of Bethlehem, PA with two
striped bass he caught of Cast-a-fly Charters last week.
The women and men, who catch,
process and support commercial fishing do our state and country a great
service. They allow us to have fresh, nutritious
seafood on our dinner table at a reasonable price. It you do not fish yourself, or have friends
and relatives that fish, there is no other way you can acquire this great
source of protein.
Additionally, commercial fishing
has a big economic impact in Rhode Island, with recreational fishing having even
a greater economic impact according to the National Oceanographic &
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).
Earlier this month NOAA released an
economics report (see link below) that said the 2015 economic impact of the
Rhode Island commercial seafood industry was approximately $290-million in sales,
$105-million in income, $147- million in value added to the economy, and the
industry supports 4,522 jobs in Rhode Island.
What was surprising is that recreational
fishing has even a greater economic impact on the state. The report said that recreational fishing
generated $332-million in sales, $141-million in income, $216-million in value
added to the economy, and the industry supports 3,554 jobs.
A copy of the report titled NOAA’s Fisheries Economics of the U.S. can
be found on NOAA’s website at https://www.st.nmfs.noaa.gov/economics/publications/feus/fisheries_economics_2015/index
.
The report said that nationally commercial and recreational fishing
generated $208 billion in sales, contributed $97 billion to the gross domestic
product and supported 1.6 million full- and part-time jobs in 2015.
The four different measures in the
report show how fishermen expenditures affect the economy in a region (state or
nationwide): sales, income and value-added, and employment. Sales refer to the
gross value of all sales by regional businesses affected by an activity, such
as commercial or recreational fishing. It includes both the direct sales of the
fish landed or those made by the angler and sales made between businesses and
households resulting from that original sale. Income includes personal income
(wages and salaries) and proprietors’ income (income from self-employment).
Value-added is the contribution made to the gross domestic product in a region.
Employment is specified on the basis of full-time and part-time jobs supported
directly or indirectly by fish sales or the purchases made by anglers. NOAA Fisheries
uses a regional impact modeling software, called IMPLAN, to estimate these four
types of impacts.
Black sea bass regulations likely to change
Rhode Island’s black sea bass (BSB)
regulations will likely change again becoming a bit more conservative for the
later part of the season. Current
measures to meet 2017 Recreational Harvest Limits (RHL) for BSB have been
revisited by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission based on the
overfishing of harvest limits that occurred in the last two months of 2016
(which is referred to as Wave 6).
The Wave 6 data indicated a
reduction is needed to stay within the 2017 RHL and the Board decided to set
the possession limit for wave 6 (November and December of 2017) at five fish in
state waters from Rhode Island through New Jersey. The Board said in a release last week, “All
other state measures remain unchanged 2016.”
So this means we can expect a
change in what were tentative 2017 Rhode Island BSB regulations, likely in the
later part of the season. The tentative
split season regulations for BSB were: three fish/person/day from May 25 to
August 31; seven fish/person/day between September 1 through September 21; a
closed season when federal waters are closed from September 22 to October 21;
and seven fish/person/day from October 22 to December 31. The final State of RI
ruling will be reported once it is released, likely sometime in June.
Experimental reefs built at Quonochontaug Pond
The RI DEM and the Nature
Conservancy have teamed up to develop nine experimental reefs made of recycled surf
clam and oyster shell, and then seeding them with live oysters. The idea is that the complex surge will
attract marine life, and provide food and shelter for juvenile fish, increasing
survival rates.
State and Nature Conservancy scientists say the aim of the
multiyear project is to find out whether
constructing oyster reefs in shallow coastal areas can improve the growth and
survival of early life stages of recreationally important fish such as black
sea bass, tautog, striped bass, scup, summer flounder, and winter flounder.
“Research in the Gulf of Mexico and Mid-Atlantic region has
shown that constructing oyster reefs can increase fish and invertebrate
biomass, as well as the growth and survival of recreationally important fish
species,” said Eric Schneider, Principal Marine Biologist, for RI DEM Marine
Fisheries. “Considering the former research and that current oyster populations
in Rhode Island are less than 10% of those from the mid-1900s, we believe that
enhancing this ecologically important habitat will benefit local fish
communities and anglers. Rhode Island’s coastal waters offer many fantastic
opportunities for anglers to enjoy the diversity and abundance of our local
catch.”
The Nature Conservancy and RI DEM pooled their resources to
fund this project, with support from the U.S. Fish
and Wildlife Service’s Sport Fish Restoration Program and many individual
donors.
Where’s the bite
Freshwater fishing
for largemouth bass has been very good. With anglers catching some very large
fish in lakes and ponds in Rhode Island.” said John Lavallee of Continental
Bait & Tackle, Cranston. John
Littlefield of Archie’s Bait & Tackle, Riverside said, “The trout bite has
been good in the six ponds DEM restocked and particularly good at Willet Avenue
Pond where one customer landing four nice fish in a couple of hours.”
Striped bass
fishing is starting to explode in the East Passage of Narragansett Bay from Mt.
Hope Bay and Popasquash Point, Bristol all the way up the Providence River to
the Hurricane Barrier. Schools of Atlantic menhaden have made their presence
known in the East Passage. “Customer Rocco Patriarca landed a plump 35 pound
fish that had four whole Atlantic menhaden in it and one head. The Barrington
Bridge is good for bass fishing too with anglers using worms and clam tongue.”
said John Littlefield of Archie’s Bait.
John Lavallee of Continental Bait said, “The Bay is lighting up with
pogies and anglers are catching fish.
Live lining Atlantic menhaden seems to be working better than using
chunks of menhaden. Customers are
catching a lot of smaller keepers in the 30” range at the Barrington Bridge and
Collier Park.” Manny Macedo of Lucky
Bait & Tackle, Warren said, “One customer caught a 34 pound striper off
Colt State Park with a lot of school bass and keepers mixed in on the Warren
River and off Bristol.” Matt Conti of Snug Harbor Marina, South Kingstown, said, “Last week we had a lot of fish being
caught off the beaches in the 28” to 32” range but at the end of last week they
seemed to have moved into the Bay over the weekend.”
Tautog fishing
reports are mixed. Some anglers are
finding the fish and catching there limit, three fish/person/day and others are
not catching many at all. Overall it has
been a very slow spring tautog season.
Summer flounder
(fluke) have started to make themselves known.
“Anglers are catching keeper size fish south of Block Island and some
fishermen are starting to catch them along the southern coastal shore.” said
Matt Conti of Snug Harbor Marina. Manny Macedo of Lucky Bait said, “A 21” fluke
was landed at the mouth of the Sakonnet River this past week so the bite there
is just starting.”
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