They’re Already Reeling Over Impending Rockfish Changes
It’s an easy enough number to remember: (800) ROCKCOD.
But they might as well have changed it to (800) PUMPGAS.
Or such is the feeling one gets while talking to Darby Neil, vice president of Virg’s Landing in Morro Bay.
His sportfishing business, which relies almost solely on rock cod or rockfish during winter and early spring, will be among the hardest hit by statewide regulation changes that will go into effect Jan. 1.
“We’re looking at complete unemployment,” Neil says of an impending closure of the rockfish fishery in March and April. “We’ve got about 40 guys, I’ve got six boats and two owner-operators who run out of here. We’re going to lose a lot of crew, which means when we rehire, we’re going to have a green and inexperienced crew, which brings up safety issues.”
At issue now, as far as state and federal fisheries agencies are concerned, is the protection of Pacific Ocean perch (north of California), lingcod and several species within the Sebastes family, which are generally referred to as rockfish or rock cod.
The California Fish and Game Commission, during a meeting last week in Sacramento, approved tentative measures designed to protect lingcod and bocaccio, which were recently federally listed as “overfished,” as well as cow cod and canary rockfish, which are close to being listed.
Such listing, made in March by the National Marine Fisheries Service, mandates that plans be put in place within one year to rebuild stocks to “healthy” levels within 10 years or “one mean generation.” With bocaccio, for example, one mean generation is about 12 years.
The Pacific Fishery Management Council, a federal agency based in Portland, Ore., will consider the new regulations during a meeting next week, and the state commission will formally adopt new regulations in December. Next week’s meeting in San Diego will allow for public comments, but no major concessions or alterations are likely.
Similar meetings are scheduled in Oregon and Washington.
In essence, the California scenario in and well beyond 2000 will include closing of the rockfish fishery to sportfishing in January and February south of Point Conception, and in March and April north of Point Conception. This is designed to eliminate pressure on species when impact is usually greatest.
The closing is because all but lingcod, which have no air bladders, usually die from the pressure change when reeled from the deep water in which they live. Thus, it is all but impossible to be selective.
The state commission also approved the following “tentative set of determinations” for sportfishing fleets during open seasons:
* A reduction of the general bag limit from 15 to as few as 10.
* A reduced limit of bocaccio from three to two.
* A reduced limit of canary rockfish from 10 to three or two, depending on location.
* A reduced limit of cow cod from 10 to zero or one, and a maximum of five per vessel.
* An increase in the minimum size limit for lingcod from 24 to 26 inches.
* A limit of three hooks per line, instead of the four to eight on traditional “rock cod rigs.”
* The mandatory retention of the whole skin, instead of just a patch, on carcasses of fish fillets, so they can be easily identified.
Commercial trawlers are going to be hit just as hard, facing the likelihood of severe gear restrictions that will keep them out of the rocks altogether. They probably also will experience closed seasons and other limitations.
As far as the sportfishing industry is concerned, the regulation changes are one thing, but the closures have those with heavy reliance on rockfish--mostly from the Ventura area north-- feeling like fish out of water.
“What am I going to do? I’m probably going to go out of business, that’s what,” bemoans Santa Maria’s Dan Dunlap, maker of the popular Jax Jigs, which are used primarily by those targeting rockfish. “January and February is when I earn 50% of my annual income. But I also sell to the fleets up here, and they can’t fish in March and April.”
Says Russ Harmon, owner of Cisco Sportfishing in Oxnard, “What I’m trying to do is get creative and set up halibut tournaments and calico [bass] tournaments, things like that. I guess we can start whale watching in January. We’ve tried that but usually don’t get the bodies that early because of [frequent poor] weather.”
Harmon said several charters have been canceled during January and February and that he’ll try to survive with open-party, or walk-on business, hoping for frequent visits from white seabass and yellowtail, which always draw a crowd.
Says skipper John Shull of the Pacific Dawn, “What they’ve done is take away our paychecks for two months.”
What biologists have done is determine that the species in question need help--and quickly. They’ve done this largely through trawl surveys north of Point Conception, and by inspecting log books and commercial catch slips.
Landing operators south of Point Conception are angry that Southern California was hit so hard, even though there are no trawl surveys here to support the need for such drastic measures.
“What they’re doing is looking north and expanding that information to cover all the way to Mexico,” says Bob Fletcher, a PFMC member who also serves as president of the Sportfishing Assn. of California. “Until they develop a survey to track abundance of [Southland] stocks, nobody’s going to feel good about the estimates. But right now they’re using the best science available.”
Fletcher adds that biologists have done some research in Southern California waters, mostly egg and larvae surveys.
In any event, the wheels are in motion and the next several months will be interesting. The issue of compensation will come up during the next sessions of state and federal Congress. Lawyers are being consulted, alternative species are being looked at more seriously and those most affected are doing what they can to avoid having to pump gas for a living.
SHORT CASTS
* More closings: San Diego’s long-range fleet is anticipating word from Mexico that the country will close its yellowfin tuna fishery until the end of the year, complying with an international resolution recommending widespread closings throughout the Eastern Pacific. The closing is expected to be announced in a week or so and at least two vessels have already canceled or altered charters.
* Big-money marlin: The Bisbee Black & Blue tournament off Cabo San Lucas is over and Team Big Ts, led by Ventura angler Chuck Ballensky’s 597-pound blue marlin, is $729,890 richer. In all, 17 billfish meeting the 300-pound minimum-weight requirement were brought to the scale, and 85 were released. Feeling a little slighted, but still $685,475 richer, is Team Chupacabra, which weighed in a 597 1/2-pound blue, only to see it lose a pound when it was determined that extra rope used to bend the marlin to keep it from dragging from the scale caused it to gain a pound.
* Tipping the scales: Joyce Toomey of Pacifica caught a 39.2-pound yellowtail last week aboard the Royal Polaris out of San Diego. It wasn’t an especially large specimen, but it probably will land Toomey in the world record book, since it eclipses the current women’s 80-pound line-class record of 37 pounds.
John Reyes of Los Alamitos boated a 100-pound bigeye tuna to claim jackpot honors aboard the Red Rooster III this week out of San Diego. Jason Hackerd of Upland earned big-fish honors at Virg’s by landing a 55-pound bluefin tuna during an albacore trip aboard the Admiral.
* Philip Friedman of 976-TUNA and Pierpoint Landing in Long Beach are treating 1,000 inner-city kids to a day of fishing Nov. 15-19. On hand to assist them (or vice versa) will be members of the Long Beach Ice Dogs hockey team. Those wanting to donate time, tackle or food can contact Friedman at (310) 328-8862.
* Skiing-snowboarding: Yes, the Sierra Nevada has received a dusting and snow-blowers are doing the rest, according to Mammoth Mountain, which announced Nov. 11 as opening day. Broadway Express will open first, “and if all goes well, we should have a number of lifts operating by Nov. 20,” a resort spokeswoman said. Tahoe-area resorts are also close to opening and anticipating another banner year, thanks to La Nina, which funnels storm systems right through the region. Another La Nina winter does not bode well for Southland resorts with little or limited snow-making capability.
* Archery: Plans are in the works to open a 20-acre archery facility with indoor and outdoor 3-D and pop-up ranges north of Los Angeles in Acton. Rick Hall, son of outdoor show promoter Fred Hall, is heading a project he says will lead to a Junior Olympic development program, but says he needs the support of the public to kick things off. Those interested are urged to attend a 9 a.m. meeting on Wednesday in Room 150 at the Los Angeles County Regional Planning office, 350 W. Temple St. in downtown Los Angeles.
WINDING UP
Jesse Spencer has become a celebrity on the big island of Hawaii after surviving a tiger shark attack while surfing last week near Kailua-Kona. The shark bit him only once, but it was enough to cause extensive damage to tendons and ligaments in his arm.
And the personable 16-year-old cannot believe the attention he has gotten since--including a new board and an invitation to the set of “Baywatch Hawaii.”
In response to all this, Spencer told the Honolulu Star-Bulletin, “I really don’t like being famous for this. It feels kind of weird. . . . Plenty of people looking at me double-thinking, ‘There’s shark boy.’ ”
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FISH REPORT, PAGE 14
