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Spearfishing Regulations This area is for the topic of existing or proposed Spearfishing Regulations.

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Old 11-12-2003, 11:53 AM   #16
LSUBigL
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Can we get some theme music here? Maybe "Come sail away" by Styx..or maybe by Cartman
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Old 11-12-2003, 12:47 PM   #17
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Here's mine. Maybe it brings up a couple new points. In any event, thanks Rob for taking the point on this. Good luck!

To whom it may concern:

I am an attorney in Boca Raton, Florida. I have lived here since 1968 when I moved here as a child. Since that time, I have been an avid hook and line fisherman and have seen fish stocks wax and wane with development, changes in recreational and commercial fishing regulations, population growth and pollution. I have been a recreational freediver for lobsters since 1977 and a SCUBA diver since 2001. Although hook and line fishing was for over 30 years my life's passion, it has been replaced by spearfishing.

Spearfishing allows the participant to visit and gain an appreciation for the environment in which he is harvesting. It allows for the selective harvest of game with virtually no bycatch of unwanted or undersized fish. Although I find spearfishing more enjoyable than hook and line fishing, I find it to be a less productive means of harvesting fish. Many hook and line fishermen think that spearfishermen can simply swim over to any desirable fish and assassinate it. That is simply not true; game fish (and particularly larger specimens) are very wary of divers - particularly SCUBA divers with the noisy bubbles that they emit. If this were not the case, a greater percentage of the commercial harvest would be taken by commercial spearfishermen as compared to commercial rod and reel fishermen. Please bear in mind that although the majority of spearfishermen have significant hook and line experience, relatively few hook and line fishermen have any spearfishing experience.

The spearfisherman is also limited by his body and physics on how long the can stay at depth to harvest fish. He faces decompression limits that require him to spend more than half the day on the surface allowing his body to off gas the excess nitrogen in his blood. On a full day of diving, I may dive 4 tanks with effective hunting times of 45 minutes per dive (depending upon depth). Accordingly, from sunrise to sunset I will have spent approximately 3 hours harvesting fish. The rod and reel fisherman, in contrast, can spend the entire day engaged in his pursuit.

It has been stated that one of the objectives of the restriction of spearfishing is to give relief to breeding stock (larger specimens) that are targeted by spearfishermen. You should be aware that most larger species of grouper and other fish targeted by spearfishermen do not inhabit the reef all year. Rather these fish spend most of the year in depths that are not accessible to recreational divers. Thus, spearfishermen already effectively have a closed season on the breeding stock during the majority of the year. Hook and line fishermen, however, can fish for these larger specimens in the deep water with rod and reel and particularly electric reels.

Spearfishermen provide effective and timely environmental feedback that rod and reel fishermen cannot. I can't count the number of times that divers bring man made or other environmental damage to reefs to the attention of the authorities before greater damage can be done. While it is true that nonspearfishing divers could also report the same damage, nonspearfishing divers are not drawn to the same remote and hard to access areas that spearfishermen are drawn in the pursuit of fish.

Because of its less efficient nature, on an economic level, spearfishermen contribute more to the economy per pound of harvested fish than rod and reel fishermen. SCUBA diving is not an inexpensive sport. It is a highly technical one than requires dive computers, regulators, mixed breathing gases, high volume tanks and other sophisticated and expensive equipment. Spearfishing charters can accommodate a limited number of divers due to the space limitations that are caused by the volume of gear that each diver is required to bring with them. Unlike a hook and line party boat, a spearfishing charter boat can carry a very limited number of divers dues to both space limitations and the captain's ability to safely monitor a limited number of divers in the water. Nevertheless, the boat's expenses in fuel, maintenance and crew are the same as a boat of the same size that accommodates a greater number of hook and line fishermen. Accordingly, each spearfisherman must pay more to participate in his sport than he would if he were rod and reel fishing.

I am not writing to suggest that you should limit rod and reel fishing. However, I fail to find the logic in limiting spearfishing while not also limiting a means of harvest that is less discriminate, more productive, kills unwanted and undersize fish (bycatch), has greater access to breeding stock, provides less environmental feedback and provides less of a stimulation to the economy per pound of harvested resource. I would think, rather, that any proposed regulations would seek to encourage more fishermen to harvest their fish with a spear instead of a rod and reel. It is my understanding that, as a matter of law, regulations must have a rational relationship to a stated governmental purpose. I cannot discern that relationship here.

Thank you for your consideration of this matter.

Respectfully submitted,

John A. Herrera
Boca Raton, Florida

Last edited by kitefisherman; 11-12-2003 at 03:37 PM.
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Old 11-12-2003, 12:55 PM   #18
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Good letter, Kite.

Damn Attorneys!!
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Old 11-12-2003, 01:01 PM   #19
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Thanks for taking the initiative to fight this thing ! Just sent my e-mail to add to the stack.
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Old 11-12-2003, 01:09 PM   #20
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Nice one! That closing paragraph says it all.
Good job John.
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Old 11-12-2003, 01:31 PM   #21
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Great letter Kite.
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Ocean Rhino Spearguns: Designed & Built By Commercial Spearfishermen

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Old 11-12-2003, 01:40 PM   #22
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Any clubs, shops, etc that would like me to represent them at this meeting please email me. at Rob@CharlestonDiving.com to be included.
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Old 11-12-2003, 10:11 PM   #23
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I also put your link on deeperblue so maybe that will help some more. I will contact some spearing/dive clubs in the area...Stan, think you could get the Helldivers to pen one out at the next meeting or maybe post something on the LDUC site?
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Old 11-12-2003, 10:21 PM   #24
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Done!
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Old 11-13-2003, 12:10 AM   #25
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Bring it on brothers!
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Old 11-13-2003, 07:16 AM   #26
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sent..........
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Old 11-13-2003, 09:30 AM   #27
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I feel the love! These letters are great guys. Reading all of them is really preparing me to answer any questions that will arise at the meeting.

I have about 30 letters so far. Fish biologists, Lawyers, charter captains, etc. Every one of these letters will be submitted for the official record.

Thanks guys, keep them coming! The meeting is this monday so there isn't much time.
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Old 11-13-2003, 03:00 PM   #28
rigdvr
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heres a link to a thread on deeperblue to get additional letters if any of you want to inform more on this matter.

http://forums.deeperblue.net/showthr...118#post296118
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Old 11-13-2003, 04:19 PM   #29
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sent mine
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Old 11-13-2003, 05:06 PM   #30
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done.

Rob, you should save all these letters for any future jackass scenarios like this.
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