[Fiskadoro]

So I did some checking around and I found some things out.

Here's my letter for the DFG:

To the California Department of Fish & Wildlife Spiny Lobster Management Team:

I hear the commercials took a record number of lobsters last year, that there is now a debate about regulations to monitor the commercial take, and that the commercials have suggested regulations to limit the recreational take. I'd suggest the DFG work out the commercial regulations on their own merit.

So the possible commercial regulations are a catch limit or seasonal quota and a restriction of the number of traps. Logical enough. I'm surprised these regulations do not already exist.

Recs have a gear limit of 5 nets per person and a catch limit 7 lobsters a day. If these regulations are necessary for recreational anglers it seems logical that the commercials would need to be regulated in a similar manner.

I've heard the commercials are against being regulated, are opposed any kind of quota or catch limit, but a trap limit of 500 traps per permit with stacking is still being discussed. I think that is a great step, but I've been told that they will not agree to any trap number limitations until more restrictions placed on the recreational anglers. That they think the seasonal quota they reject for themselves should be imposed on the recreational anglers. I can't see the logic. They don't want a quota or catch limit for themselves but they want to keep our daily bag limit and add a seasonal quota for recreationals. That's ridiculously unfair, and no seasonal quotas for recreational anglers should even be discussed until the commercials are willing to discuss one for their own fishery.

The other regulation proposed would be a ban on mechanical pullers in the recreational lobster fishery.

This is of interest to me and my initial take is that such a regulation would limit recreational lobster fisherman access, and force us to all fish the same shallow inshore waters. You can't hoop deep rocks pulling nets by hand, it's too hard. Divers can't get down there, so shutting down the use of mechanical pullers would force recreational anglers off deep water rock structure leaving those areas to the commercial trap fisherman alone. A good strategy for them but once again unfair.

The commercials claim that this regulation is necessary because recreational anglers are using pullers to poach lobsters from their traps. That is just not a physical reality.

I have a puller. I built it after my first lobster trip. As a fabricator I work with my hands all day and over time I've done some damage to my wrists. I'm not on disability, but if I hoop without a puller for too long my wrists hurt so much I can't even hold a fork when I get home. I built my puller from a old outboard starter motor and a gearbox, but like any good fabricator I researched various options before building my own. So I know a few things about pullers and line haulers.

Basically there are two types of pullers. Recreational pullers for crab and shrimp pots and commercial duty lobster trap line haulers.

My puller has about a fifty pound capacity, the best pullers I've seen used for recreational lobster are Ace Line Haulers, a good crab pot puller that costs $500 and has a 100 pound capacity.

The majority of the line haulers Commercial Lobster Fisherman use have between a 1000 and 2900 pound capacity, and cost between $1500 to $6000. Recreational lobster fisherman do not buy those kinds of pullers and we do not use them.

No recreational angler has ever been caught pulling a commercial lobster trap with a Ace puller. Our pullers couldn't physically pull the traps even if we tried.

It's like saying we should ban pickup trucks because they are taking away business from long haul interstate trucking. Pickup trucks are not in the same league as huge diesel 18 wheelers.

A $500 Ace 100 pound capacity line hauler not even remotely in the same league as a $5300 Hydro Slave Hydraulic puller with a 2900 pound capacity.

The commercials know this. They own lobster boats, they know what kind of gear they have to buy to do the job.

Simply stated the new regulations suggested for the recreational fishery have no merit and should not even be considered at this point.

Our catch is down. We are not overfishing. Recreational anglers already have both gear limits and catch limits. Our mechanical pullers are used in deep water where most do not hoop, which lessons the pressure on the inshore hoop dive fishery. They do not give us a unfair advantage, and they are certainly not used for poaching lobster or illegally pulling commercial traps because they couldn't be used to do so.

At this point I would request that you reject the regulations proposed for the recreational lobster anglers, and move forward on regulating the commercials.

I would prefer you consider both the trap limit and a seasonal quota for the commercial lobster fishery. Recreational catch and gear is already regulated in these respects it would only be fair for the commercials to be regulated in the same manner.

Jim Day