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Post subject: saltwater recreational fishing permits
Posted: Thu Mar 08, 2012 6:36 pm
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Open Season: Something smells fishy about NOAA survey
By MARC FOLCO

Open Season

March 04, 2012 - 12:00 AM

If you get a check in the mail asking you to relinquish your 2012 Mass. Recreational Saltwater Fishing Permit, think very carefully before you cash it. The Division of Marine Fisheries (MarineFisheries) is collaborating with the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) and NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) to collect information on the state's recreational saltwater fishery to measure its economic value, says MarineFisheries.

Basically, it's NOAA's bright idea and one NOAA official reportedly said that it's going to cause a commotion, which it has. NOAA has allocated a total of $145,000 to conduct the survey of which $75,000 is earmarked for cash offers as bait to lure saltwater anglers into taking it hook, line and sinker and cashing the checks in return for giving up their 2012 Mass. Recreational Saltwater Fishing Permit and thus their privilege to fish state marine waters this year.

Nearly 20,000 anglers have already bough their 2012 permits, and the checks, ranging from $15 to $500, are in the mail to about 500 anglers. Another 700 mailings include cash offers (would you be willing to not fish this year for x-amount of dollars?) and another 700 random recipients will receive a questionnaire asking how much they'd be willing to pay for the recreational saltwater permit, other than the current $10. If you get a check and cash it, you must mail your 2012 saltwater fishing permit back.

Scott Steinback, a NOAA economist who dreamt up the scheme, told the Boston Globe, "No one has ever tried to do this before,'' he said. "I knew it would cause turmoil here, but I think it's worthwhile.'' Massachusetts is the only state the survey and offers are being conducted.

Steinback also conceded that the survey is likely to result in puzzlement, or worse. And he's right.

Anglers and angling organizations are looking at it through hairy eyeballs with lots of skepticism, including myself. Why are the feds offering $500 for a $10 permit? Why are they paying people not to fish? Why are they asking how much more anglers are willing to pay for a permit? Why are they trying to assess what the "top dollar" rate is on the privilege to fish recreationally? If you cash a check, will NOAA think recreational anglers can be bought and manipulated with money, and aren't that passionate about their sport — and therefore give more of the harvest quotas to the commercial fishermen? If you don't cash the check, will NOAA think recreational anglers hold their sport near and dear and can command any permit fee?

On Wednesday, MarineFisheries issued an advisory stating the information won't be used to raise permit fees. The advisory said, "MarineFisheries is issuing this advisory to attest to the legitimacy of this angler permit survey, including the cash offers that some individuals will receive, and to assure its constituents that in no way will the information from the survey be used to modify fees for Massachusetts' recreational saltwater fishing permits."

That aside, one must continue to wonder, in these horrible economic times, why NOAA is offering Massachusetts anglers $75,000 not to fish and spending another $70,000 on survey-related expenses. Something sure smells fishy to me.

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