Proposed Conservation Area for Maidens

Hi Lads,

Please read this if you fish the Maidens. We need to be concerned as it could mean the end of recreational fishing in the area.

http://applications.doeni.gov.uk/publications/document.asp?docid=17567

If RSA's get banned from this area it will effectively end boat fishing in the East Antrim Area.

Can everyone who fish this area please please get onto the MP Sammy Wilson.

Even if you are not from the area. In fact it helps if anglers viewed as tourists contact him as they bring extra money into East Antrim.

He can be contacted here

http://www.sammywilson.org/contact/

The more people who lobby him the better chance of him listening.

Cheers,
Trev

This is the thin end of the wedge I think. If these proposals go through without any objections from anglers then they will think we are happy. Then they will be free to impose what ever restrictions they see fit. It is not just the Maidens but also Rathlin island and the Skerries that will be affected. Now is the time to have your say before its to late

Your very right mate this seems to going trough with out any objections this is the first of 3 SAC special areas of conservation on the county antrim coast and if it goes trough it will just be the start. These 3 SAC's will effect boat anglers so far, but as you said its only the start next could be large areas of the shore line turned into SAC's with limited or no fishing at all

Interesting that they don't actually mention angling only that charter and small boat may have an effect from fuel spillage or grounding.

[janie tyler]

Interesting that they don't actually mention angling only that charter and small boat may have an effect from fuel spillage or grounding.

I am sure you are very aware of how this begins Davey as you have seen this over in Scotland with the No Take Zones around Arran

Last edited by janie tyler on Sat Mar 12, 2011 11:04 am, edited 1 time in total.

I think it is important to note that recreational angling has not been listed as an operation that might impact on the features that this area is being designated for. I dont think there is any intention on the part of those proposing these areas to curtail or limit angling but i am sure there will be a need for them to reduce commercial activity if it can be shown to have an impact on the features i.e. reefs, sandbanks etc. DOE/NIEA will have to work with DARD fisheries to bring about any change to the commercial fishing sectors. I still think it is important that recreational angling bodies register their concerns about how anglers will be viewed in these areas and if possible get a committment from the DOE that angling will be permitted and not be classed as a notifiable operation with some sort of permit system. In theory any area closed to commercial fishing activity should be of benefit to anglers in the medium to long term and i think DOE/NIEA are aware of the benefits shown in other countries.

great points ciaran. i had a read through the document on another site and made the same points. it would only appear to affect the commercial sector in regard to the destruction of the sea bed with thier trawling methods, which lets be honest have a massive impact on the sea bed destroying the demersal habitat. admittadly it would mean that small boats could'nt set anchor out there for a days fishing but it would have no affect to shore and boat angling just like fishing the shores of strangford lough which is widely an ASSI area.

but there are a few more spanners to be thrown into the works on this one.

for instance would this not spell the end to the salmon farms in red bay? a commercial operation fully backed by the MLA'S at stormont who have fought on many fronts for the promotion of this buisness over the last few years? it would be a hell of a turn around to have backed this operation only to then sign up to something that could spell the end of it?

and lets not forget the massive underground salt leeching programme on the table for larne lough. this would be a massive operation where they have proposed to pump sea water into the underground salt viens in a bid to hollow them out in preperation for millions of cubic feet of natural gas storage. the enviromental impact from pumping out this concentrated salt soloution just off shore at browns bay would be catosprophic to the native marine species as studys have shown in other countries where this process has been praticed in the past. some species will thrive, but others will decline and dissappear. considering the money being thrown into those propositions mabey an area of protection would be a good thing in the long run. i could'nt see the leeching programme going ahead if the surrounding area was under protection.
and yet again, if looking at a long term benefits, would it not be a good thing for areas like the maidens, rathlin and the skerries to be a no go area for the commercial fleets, therefore allowing good stocks of fish to return and get a foothold in an area of safety that is'nt too far from the shore. in the long term it would mean the shore fishing would ultimately benefit and small angling boats could fish away while drifting. ok, you would'nt be able to drop anchor for bigger predatory species. but would that not be a small price to pay for greater fish stocks that the commercial boys would'nt be allowed to touch in the future?
now i have to be honest and admitt that 90% of our fishing is done from the shore. so it would be misleading to say i don't have a vested interest on that front. i'd dare say my opinion might be different if i was a small boat owner who regularly anchored up at the maidens for a days fishing. but surely that would be a small price to pay for the trade off where:

all those bloody crab pots that litter the shoreline in the summer months are gone.
the commercial fleets can no longer hammer the young stocks of fish who live just offshore.
and the salt leeching programme would be knocked on the head.

just my 2 cents

[chuckaroo]

im all for the maidens to be made an SAC. it can only be a good thing to protect marine species and future stocks. our seas are decimated from over-trawling, they need all the help they can get!!
But recreational angling should be permitted - with no anchors allowed and possibly a catch and release system put in place - that would be a solution. thats what should be proposed to Sammy Wilson. thats my opinion anyways

Last edited by chuckaroo on Sun Mar 13, 2011 2:45 am, edited 1 time in total.

If you ban anchoring then that stops people fishing for skate, huss, conger, black mouth dogs, spurdogs and doggies. Also when you fish at anchor you lose a lot less tackle compared to drift fishing. Also a lot less fuel is used fuel

Lads,

Myself and a friend had a 45 minute meeting with Sammy yesterday.

This proposal is not to be taken lightly. This is being driven by marine biologists with the backing of europe and is a 'get the foot in the door operation'.

Sammy said this is only the start of it and do not be surprised if these SAC's are extended to include the shoreline.

Sammy was vey supportive of our stance but said there is a up hill struggle ahead and we have to fight tooth and nail for our sport.

if you think this will stop at the maidens and causeway. think again.

Cheers,
Trev

Remember when you lads thought that Dun Laoghaire Rathdown Co Co would never get away with banning fishing in certain parts of the East Coast under their jurisdiction?
Even with all the promised support from all sides it is now in the bylaws.
Over to you let it happen if you will but maybe a united front against all of this s*** to at least get a voice might be the way to go?

Yappo

These people pushing for these SAC have one goal and that is to have areas that will have no fishing and no disturbance from anybody except themselves when the go diving on them. As for the proposed site at the Maidens and commercial fishing the only fishing on it is done by pots, there is no trawling and has never been any in that area as the report from the NIEA states that because of the ground and reefs it cant be trawled so that's not a threat to the area.

As for stopping pots and RSA from fishing the area the NIEA also have stated that the proposed SAC is in grade 1 condition and that means its in tip top condition and all this without the area having any protection since people started fishing in and around the Maidens form god knows when so why would it need protected now.

These conservationists environmental groups or tree huggers as I prefer to call them don't want us fishing full stop to them its just another blood sport, and this is there long term objective to stop us doing our sport it wont happen over night it will take them years and they are willing to wait and do every thing they can to meet there goals wait and see.

This indeed is a shocking piece of EU bureaucracy that’s taking place (yet another one), if it wasn’t for the vigilance of trevt and Captain blunthooks going to Sammy Wilson then this would have been slipped under the radar and before you know it there’s nothing that could be done. If our governments grew a set of swingers and banned all forms of trawler fishing in UK/IRISH waters (say a year just to throw a time period out there) then surely this would allow these "special areas" to appear in our waters in a higher percentage ratio than now due to the fact that these trawler men are no longer ripping up the seabeds around our shores. I hope Sammy noted that its not pleasure angling that destroys underwater marine habitat, its trawlers and the DOE who manage to do that on there own for decades. That would give the EU quite a dilemma now wouldn’t it because at the end of the day our EU counterparts don’t eat maerl beds, hydroids and sponges?

Keep us posted lads on how things are going

Tight Lines
Aaron

Our seas have been overfished for decades now and the fish stocks have been decimated - the proof is all around us and the evidence is there for all to see. The fisheries scientists are doing their bit by monitoring stock levels as best they can and trying to regulate fishing efforts in response. I reckon that these SACs can only be a good thing, we need to protect whatever areas we can from unsustainable commercial fishing.
If the NIEA recognise the reefs and sandbanks around the Maidens to be in ‘good condition’ then there is the argument that there should be even more reason to protect it. It appears to be relatively undamaged from mans activities in the past but the reason for the SAC would be to protect it against potential threats from activities in the future - not just against the possibility of commercial fishing exploitation, but against all those factors mentioned in the report: extraction of materials, aquaculture, coastal development and engineering, waste disposal. I am by no means a “tree hugger” but i hope that we all should know that we need to be making efforts towards trying to protect what we have left. We need to revive our stocks.
Recreational angling is absolutely harmless in comparison to commercial fishing yet we should offer to practise environmentally friendly angling methods in these areas (for example no anchors, barbless hooks, catch-and-release, and/or bag limits, etc etc ) - a small price to pay indeed - then we can INSIST THAT ANGLING CONTINUES IN THESE AREAS!! It is absolutely unfair if they ban RSA.

Our seas have been overfished for decades now and the fish stocks have been decimated - the proof is all around us and the evidence is there for all to see. The fisheries scientists are doing their bit by monitoring stock levels as best they can and trying to regulate fishing efforts in response. I reckon that these SACs can only be a good thing, we need to protect whatever areas we can from unsustainable commercial fishing.
If the NIEA recognise the reefs and sandbanks around the Maidens to be in ‘good condition’ then there is the argument that there should be even more reason to protect it. It appears to be relatively undamaged from mans activities in the past but the reason for the SAC would be to protect it against potential threats from activities in the future - not just against the possibility of commercial fishing exploitation, but against all those factors mentioned in the report: extraction of materials, aquaculture, coastal development and engineering, waste disposal. I am by no means a “tree hugger” but i hope that we all should know that we need to be making efforts towards trying to protect what we have left. We need to revive our stocks.
Recreational angling is absolutely harmless in comparison to commercial fishing yet we should offer to practise environmentally friendly angling methods in these areas (for example no anchors, barbless hooks, catch-and-release, and/or bag limits, etc etc ) - a small price to pay indeed - then we can INSIST THAT ANGLING CONTINUES IN THESE AREAS!! It is absolutely unfair if they ban RSA.

The reason we are objecting so much to the SAC is if you look at other areas in the UK were they have SAC's they are now trying to turn them into No Take Zones. And they have succeeded in 2 of the areas so far where the is no fishing at all, in fact if you as an RSA fished it you could be fined £5000 this is what is concerning a lot of anglers about this.

I have seen other information about areas they want turned into SAC's in N Ireland and these are from Carlingford Lough to Lough Foyle about 15 areas in total in shore and off shore now that is a lot of SAC's just for N Ireland.

The reason we are objecting so much to the SAC is if you look at other areas in the UK were they have SAC's they are now trying to turn them into No Take Zones. And they have succeeded in 2 of the areas so far where the is no fishing at all, in fact if you as an RSA fished it you could be fined £5000 this is what is concerning a lot of anglers about this.

I have seen other information about areas they want turned into SAC's in N Ireland and these are from Carlingford Lough to Lough Foyle about 15 areas in total in shore and off shore now that is a lot of SAC's just for N Ireland.

I appreciate that Janie. something needs to be done.

Why should we anglers have to pay the price. We didnt take all the fish and destroy the sea bed. Most anglers are conservation minded and want things to improve .