Irish Bass Conservation

Good stuff great to see this campaign getting going. I once had the pleasure of meeting Clive Gammon, Kevine Linnane and Des Brennan in Ballydavid and to hear the stories of the early days of their surf fishing exploits on County Kerrys storm beachs is some thing that i will remember for ever they were great Anglers and even greater people. All sadly missed and i can say just as a memory to these three Pioneers of the sport of surf fishing in ireland this campaign should be supported by not just Bass anglers in general but by the entire angling community as a whole. I for one have personally witnessed the total destruction of many well known spots ie, Greystones and the wicklow beaches is one example. So i can safely say that i will do my part and lobby at every given chance. Angling was passed on to me at a very early age by my Father Paddy and i am now delighted to pass this wonderful sport on to my son Conor. It has brought me literally all around the world and to every inch of this island its my no. 1 intrest and i love to be out on the water with nature at its best. It is my duty to ensure that our stocks are handed over to the next generation in a better state than they are in now and i will always do my bit to ensure this happens.
ps angling has also introduced me to many friends and wonderful people its a sport for all so Look atfer it.
Nicky.
This was written by a good friend on the Irish kayak angling  site.Here is my answer


Well said Nickey.I like yourself have come a long way in fishing,I rember the days you talked about we as anglers were our our worst enemies .Down to flounders been wiped out in Cats strand ,Dogfish and cod in Wicklow Bass in Kerry and then later throughout IRELAND.The Shad on their way up river were hit and used as pig food.Our eels are in decline our salmon and sea trout numbers are down even with the ending of drift net fishing .Their are other stocks of fish that are in decline but the one making a return is the BASS.

As Nickey said it is up to all anglers to stand up and say we want change .In the time of political change we need to ask the person knocking on the door what are they going to do.Make bass and other fish untouchable by commercial fisherman .

Protect the areas these fish live in .[bring back the 3 mile limit for trawling] no fishing with mackerel nets in shore as these catch all the other fish.Report all illegal fishing you see [to this number 1890347424] 

Value to the tourist sector from bass is growing at a great rate ,if a rod caught salmon is worth 436 Euros to the Irish economy according to Suzanne Camoion,Business Development Manager at Inland Fisheries Ireland.So with the allowable catch for 2011at 91,338,the value for tourism market is huge.How many bass are caught by tourists each year and returned for the next person to catch.Add up what bass are bringing to Ireland in revenue in the times we live in.If the same amount of bass are caught in 2011 as salmon bass fishing is wort 39,823369 to the Irish people [hotels b/b shops guides bait bars food] This is just a small thing in a big wheel but it is one thing we can change and bring back the fish stocks that we once had .
And the next time you are catching a few bass put a few back for the ghosts of all the great bass anglers gone by to catch a few when no one is looking.