Confiscating gear

I hear that yesterday the fisheries confiscated gear from a small boat in Donegal bay. I dont know what gear was confiscated but after the new bye-law came in to force regarding Tuna and billfish I have made several attempts to contact someone of authority in IFI to tell me what rods and reels are still allowed as I have 130lb class rods and up to 80w reels that I use for shark fishing. To date I have had no replies to e-mails and when I call I am told the matter would be passed on to the person dealing with this but yet again no return calls. Having read the bye-law again I have addressed the part that refers to the use of any fishing tackle capable of trolling or fishing for these fish in the opinion of a fisheries officer and therein lies the problem as fisheries officers opinions may differ. On a youtube channel "Fishlocker" I saw the chap catch 2 Tuna on a Penn 30 and 80lb rod so are we now down to this level of gear and anything of this size or bigger is illegal. Any law or bye-law should be absolutely definite in order that we can conform to the rules but to leave it to individual opinions opens a door for any gear to be taken and then up to us to take time and money to attempt retrieval. I would love to hear your thoughts on this matter.

Sadly we have members on this web site who are employed by I.F.I. who could answer all but for legal reasons or they want to hide there position will not reply.

If any of them want to send me a PM on the by-laws or a link to find them please do so and I'll post them up no name mentioned.

Was little warriors towing lures in donegal bay.. rib about and strictly licenced boats only to tow lures. Drifting for sharks with bait they wouldn't bother you

I understand you cannot troll the squid rigs but also in the bye-law it states that if you have any fishing tackle capable of catching these fish that IFI officers can confiscate the gear. Trust me its only a matter of time until this happens when an officer takes rods and reels, if it hasnt already happened.To properly enforce a law you must have exact definitions of what is legal and illegal so people can fish with peace of mind knowing that all their fishing tackle is legal but to be so vague as to say its up to the IFI officers on duty to determine whether its legal or not is just not right. And to reply to Donal, I hope the IFI members on this site even reply here because they wont do it from their place of business. There was a time when genuine fishermen would help out the IFI but in recent times they seem to be alienating themselves from us and they will find it more difficult to get any information from the people who see all when fishing. Their main concern was the fact that some people were catching Tuna and selling them and all I will say to that is that these individuals will continue doing this and less anglers will help police this.

As with any law, it is open to interpretation and it will only be in the courts that it will be truly tested.
I, like you, read the SI and what I gleaned from it was:
Unlicensed boats (there are 22 licenced boats in the state) are not allow target tuna, billfish and sharks by trolling. You cannot have gear on board which can be interpreted as trolling gear.
I would reckon on that gear being terminal gear as the rods and reels could be used for any species.
Rods and reels suitable for fishing for tuna can of course be used for sharks. Other than the biggest of porbeagles it would probably be an unfair fight. In areas frequented by bluefin anglers run the gauntlet by having "big" gear onboard. If that "big" gear is combined with trolling gear, then their gear can be confiscated.
I would think that IFI will make an example of some. I think that if boats want to be blatant about targeting tuna then they face the consequences if caught.

As for the anglers that seem to be more concerned about how to circumvent the rules, well, they will just have to practice their chumming techniques! (until that is banned too).

This is where a major problem arises due to the fact that any small boat angler in certain areas runs the gauntlet of any kind for using big rods and reels. Where a law exists it should be clear and concise and to be honest this bye-law is far from that. In section 4 of the bye-law it never mentions lures but in fact trolling lines with a hook so in effect thats all we would have for shark, not that we would be trolling but if we get out there and are confronted prior to sharking all the gear and set up would be deemed a suitable set up for Tuna. I fully intend relaying these comments to IFI because in the unfortunate event of any legal confrontations I want to have IFI informed of what I propose having in my boat and out fishing (not for Tuna) prior to going out.

As with any law, it is open to interpretation and it will only be in the courts that it will be truly tested.
I, like you, read the SI and what I gleaned from it was:
Unlicensed boats (there are 22 licenced boats in the state) are not allow target tuna, billfish and sharks by trolling. You cannot have gear on board which can be interpreted as trolling gear.
I would reckon on that gear being terminal gear as the rods and reels could be used for any species.
Rods and reels suitable for fishing for tuna can of course be used for sharks. Other than the biggest of porbeagles it would probably be an unfair fight. In areas frequented by bluefin anglers run the gauntlet by having "big" gear onboard. If that "big" gear is combined with trolling gear, then their gear can be confiscated.
I would think that IFI will make an example of some. I think that if boats want to be blatant about targeting tuna then they face the consequences if caught.

As for the anglers that seem to be more concerned about how to circumvent the rules, well, they will just have to practice their chumming techniques! (until that is banned too).

I genuinely don't think they won't have a leg to stand on in the courts. How can they come up with a law based on someone opinion. I really think a judge would laugh at that how they got the bylaw passed I have no idea. Could you imagine law were based on peoples opinions. I don't think they will want there officers up on the stand either to be quizzed by a good layer.
The only way they will have something is if you have a dead fish but really who would be stupid enough to do that.

Some trolling gear has different uses such as out riggers they can be used when shark fishing one pointing stern and on at the bow to keep balloons apart while drifting it will allow you to get an extra rod out and less chance of tangles.

I wouldnt be too sure about that. A judge will take a Gardas word over yours in court if it's just your word against his / hers.

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I wouldnt be too sure about that. A judge will take a Gardas word over yours in court if it's just your word against his / hers.

Sent from my SM-G950F using Tapatalk

If there is a witness on board and a jury I wouldn't be so sure. Id also recommend any time they came near you to video it.

There are alot of issues with this whole thing , If anyone has seen the way IFI have dealt with the native pike your eyes should be wide open ,
One big problem is trolling is now not allowed at all , but how are all the Irish line caught albcore caught - By trolling of course ,Im hoping this law is being used to stop the people who are catching to sell ,but it seems more targeted at the angler who just would like to catch a fish that swims in our waters , and in these times a man who cant catch a fish and feed his family from his own countrys waters ,there is something very wrong about it

Does this mean you cant troll for Bass ,etc ?

What a joke , no one even heard about it

I dont know what the IFI have done with regard to our pike stocks but all Im saying is that if they put a law in place with regard to any type of regulations on fishing it should be very clear. I spoke to fisheries officers who told me the trolling for bass, pollock, mackerel and other such species that these lures would be allowed. So now the question arises, what size lures are allowed as a bass or pollock will take a lure the size of which any tuna or billfish would take. Some boats have outriggers, I dont have them myself but I thought of getting them to spread my baits to fill a slick behind the boat but now Im not sure as they could be construed as being on my boat specifically for tuna. Are large rapallas, hard and soft plastics now not allowed, that is why a comprehensive list should be furnished by the IFI and it would give us an idea of what this law entails, and also, unfortunately for IFI, a definition of the law which we can challenge if needed. I really dont agree with the fact that the law relies on fisheries officers opinions because it puts the officers in a very precarious position trying to enforce something that is not clearly defined for any party involved.

Jellybait - The SI is quite clear - It's trolling for Tuna, Billfish and sharks. All other trolling is allowed.

Its Offishal - All laws tend to be subjective and tend to depend on the opinion of the authorised person. For example if a Garda thinks you are drunk and disorderly he will proceed and arrest you. One garda's drunk and disorderly could be another's boisterous behaviour depending of the situation.

Similarly, if, in the opinion of the fisheries officer (and they are not all dopes), an angler is targeting tuna using trolling gear the the said angler is operating against the law unless licenced. The law is not going away. Fisheries are probably only digesting the law and coming up with procedures for dealing with it. I have no doubt it will become more clear as time goes on.

I can understand your being cranky about the whole thing. It certainly seems to have been sprung on anglers without any consultation. I am not familiar with the goings on in Donegal Bay but the shenanigans must have been quite common, and from what you are saying somewhat organised, for such a speedy and draconian law to be passed so quickly.

Jellybait - The SI is quite clear - It's trolling for Tuna, Billfish and sharks. All other trolling is allowed.

so this means no more trolling for albacore by the commercial boats ?

Jellybait - The SI is quite clear - It's trolling for Tuna, Billfish and sharks. All other trolling is allowed.

so this means no more trolling for albacore by the commercial boats ?

Have another read of the SI. It's here:https://www.sea-angling-ireland.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=12&t=51211

The law is the "CONTROL OF SEA ANGLING METHODS FOR CERTAIN SPECIES OF FISH BYE-LAW NO. 981 of 2020". Commercial fishing has its own tuna regulations.

I thought our commercial fleet fished for albacore by netting? Now I am sure that the anglers that target albacore will "use popping rods" and cast when they are fishing sixty miles out....

Yes Jim you make reference to the Garda saying a person is drunk in his opinion and another may differ, I agree with that but unfortunately for the fisheries officers, out working weekdays and their weekends, they have been put in a horrible position and while they are trying to enforce a law why doesn't their office just publish a list of what tackle is not allowed. If a list is prepared at least we would be in a position to talk about it between anglers and IFI and finish up with a compromise if needed. I personally think it puts them in a very awkward situation and we, as anglers, need their services and in the main they do a difficult and sometimes thankless job. I keep hearing about spreader bars (of which I have none) being mentioned and if this is the problem why not just say these are deemed specific tackle to catch Blue fin Tuna and be done with the matter. Lets be honest while the fisheries have made some mistakes over the years I'm sure we would all agree that their services are needed because after all who else is going to police our waters.

If we look at it another way. The Garda cant decide what the level of alcohol in our system should be or even the speed limit on a road. They are given these by law and it is set out for both the Garda and the general public and this is done to protect both parties from argumentative grey areas.