EAST CORK BASS ALLIANCE SOCIETY

INTRO.
The following is a summary of the informal meeting that took place recently regarding the netting of bass on the east cork beaches prior to xmas:

Upto 42 people attended and another 12 or so were unable to attend on the night so thanks to all for participating on the night. A SWFB officer and Fishery Inspector were both in attendance and gave us great insight into the kind of illegal netting of bass going on around the east cork coastline,in particular what went down before xmas.

At the onset of the meeting it was made clear by the fishery personal that this (illegal netting) is a big operation involving a wide circle of people from, local businesses, skippers, buyers as far as even lookout people. The bass that were been caught were largely destined for the uk and continental markets.

TIMES AND METHODS:
According to previous experiences the main times for this activity are on the bigger tides for eg 3.8 to 4.3m. The months oct to dec are the prime months as the bass are more concentrated and more importantly from the netters point of view the rough seas colour the water so the bass can't see the nets.

The type of nets been used in this case are sunken gill nets [which are legal]. They typically have a depth of 20ft and are set 300 to 400yds offshore,so the nets run a ft or 2ft below the surface all the way to the sea bed. Sunken nets are legal as they can be used for catching many types of sea fish. However they are illegal when they are used specifically for catching bass. Generally speaking any sandy clean ground beaches is where these nets may be set. It can be argued that these nets are being used to catch species such as mullet and that bass are just a byecatch, which may be inevitable. However this bycatch (bass) cannot be brought ashore and used for personal gain, in other words no bass taken in these nets or any other type of net can be kept.

ADVICE AND REPORTING:
As said already the netting in the East Cork area genarally peaks between Oct to Dec on the spring tides, although it goes on throughout the year especially when tides and weather conditions are suitable.

A neighbourhood watch type scheme is being implemented by this Society and similar type schemes can be set up elsewhere with similar good organisation and trust. If suspicions are raised, ie: seeing a boat or boats working close to the shore over clean ground, record the type of boat, registration no, colour how many people on board right down to the colour of the oilskins or better still take photos.
If bass are being landed for definite ie: can be seen being boated [binoculars might come in handy], then report this info immediately to the SWRFB. Pass on your accurate info and I stress it has to be accurate and most importantly upto date. Reports such as: "Oh there were 2 buoys in the water today I think they are nets". Once the info is verified then the fishery board will act a.s.a.p. as they have a special interest in the area. Many of the staff are bass anglers too!

Our Society has the means of getting info to the fishery officers which will be acted on quickly. Accurate information from all anglers is desirable.

As stated earlier Oct to Dec and spring tides are most prominent times for illegal activity so extra attention should be paid to the waters at this time. What should also be made known clearly is that these guys net as often in daylight as darkness, they are that confident of not been caught. It is time for all anglers to be vigilant.

As a general rule of thumb if netting of bass is going on on a particular day it will more than likely be going on for several days with similar tides and weather conditions. Once again I must stress that so long as the fishery board obtain quality and accurate info a trust will form and action will be taken swiftly to catch the people involved.

CONCLUSION:
Eventhough we may be in a dark place at the moment with stocks of bass being hammered; working as a well organised team of nearly 6o members we will help to put a stop to the illegal netting of bass by a small group in East Cork.
As time goes by and word gets around our Society will grow stronger and stronger and with it more eyes watching the water protecting our bass stocks.

As said already this is just a rundown on the meeting the more sensitive info has been witheld , but at this stage we know a lot more than what we did before.
Thanks again to everyone who attended and hopefully it will be the start of going in the right direction before its too late.

Tight lines to all.

thanks for the update marlinman, fair play to you and everybody else taking the time and effort getting involved! It is a good plan and I hope that it works out and brings a halt to all this illegal practises going on unprosecuted and unpunished.
Tightlines.

well done they shouldnt be able toget away with it i dont like any species bein swooped out of water in huge numbers ESPECIALLY NOT BASS!!!!! good to see fellow fishermen standing side by side yous shoud get these scumbags and wrapp them up in there own stinkin nets and take them throw them in the bloody tide if id a lived closer id a been there to support use

brilliant, a brilliant plan! well done to all who showed up at the meeting,i hope ye catch loads of the ba****ds!!!

Those sunken gill nets sound like a right wall of death for any fish. Perhaps down the line a campaign to ban them could be considered?

well done lads keep up the good work from everyone in Diblin we are with you

Excellent summary there Mike, well done and thanks for organising

Those sunken gill nets sound like a right wall of death for any fish. Perhaps down the line a campaign to ban them could be considered?

Exactly - the beaches where the main netting activity took place are practically dead now. Myself and other anglers fished them soon after the netting took place (unaware that it had occurred) without getting a single bite. So its not just the bass that were caught - nothing got through

A big thank you is due to Marlinman for organizing the meeting and getting the ball rolling on this.

at last something productive is starting to happen on this

Fair play to you marlinman for organising this.

how do you become a member of the society ??

Fair bowls cha Mike lad, Keep us up to date. If there's anything you want us to do just let us know.

We have our own private forum within this site. This is not open to the public but is on an approval basis for obvious reasons. Any member wishing to access this forum, please PM me and I will arrange access. Please note, this is set up for discussing problems related to the local area at this stage, its not a club, its for safe sharing and discussion of issues and as such access will only be granted to those people known personally to us or proposed by other members of this group. It has to be this way lads and whilst we appreciate the support shown and given on this issue, it is important that when things of a sensitive nature are being discussed they are not in or near the public domain. We do not wish to have members targetted at any stage, its an emotive issue and large amounts of money are at stake.

Mike, a big well done once again for taking the time out to get up and try and do something about this problem.