THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, October 30, 1994 TAG: 9410300149
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C15 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY BOB HUTCHINSON, OUTDOORS EDITOR
LENGTH: Long : 105 lines
The blue-ribbon strike force studying how the state of Virginia does business stopped just short of saying that fishermen should pay for what they harvest.
Nationwide, the idea that both commercial and recreational fishermen one day will have to pay for their catch has been cropping up frequently in many places, including commercial-fishing circles.
Advocates of the idea see it as a way to reduce pressure on natural resources, owned by the public and yet, in some cases, abused by a few. They also see it as a means of supporting the burgeoning agencies that regulate fisheries.
The strike-force report, ordered by Gov. Allen and completed recently, doesn't go quite that far. But it does say that the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries and the Virginia Marine Resources Commission should be self-supporting, with licenses and user fees accounting for most of it.
Basically, the game department does that now, with most of its funds coming from the sale of hunting and freshwater fishing licenses. But not so the Marine Resources Commission, even though Virginia has, in the past two years, inaugurated a saltwater fishing license for recreational fishermen and a harvester's license, as well as individual gear licenses, for commercial fishermen.
A pay-as-you-fish plan would certainly remove some pressure from our stressed resources by reducing the number of people taking those resources.
Besides, why should a coal miner from Grundy subsidize a rod-and-reel fisherman from Virginia Beach or an oysterman from Gloucester?
STRIPER NEWS: Once again there is good news for fishermen from the annual striped bass survey conducted by the Virginia Institute of Marine Science.
The 1994 juvenile striper survey showed an index of 10.49.
The index is a comparison of spawning success over a number of years.In this case, the figure is well below the record 18.1 index of 1993. But it is almost twice the historic average of 5.8 and is the fourth-highest figure in the survey's 22 years.
Other than 1993, the only higher years were 1987 and 1989. The VIMS' report says the dramatic change since 1987 is ``likely due to the stringent management regulations in place since 1983.''
Striper populations along the East Coast plummeted in the 1970s. Limitations on the catch were launched in the early 1980s and became increasingly tougher until all striper fishing in Virginia was banned for almost two years, starting in 1988.
The regulations have been eased for the last four years, with additional easing expected in 1995.
HUNTER HARASSMENT: It is against federal law to harass a hunter on federal property now that the crime bill has been signed into law.
The anti-harassment amendment was included in the package at the urging of Sen. Conrad Burns, R-Mont., chairman of the Senate Congressional Sportsman's Caucus. The law complements hunter-harassment laws in 48 states, including Virginia.
However, the Idaho Supreme Court recently struck down a part of that state's law that made it illegal for anyone to enter or remain in an area with the intent of interfering with lawful hunting. The court, by a 4-1 decision, said the statute interfered with the right of free speech.
REEF AWARD: Virginia's artificial reef program has been honored for its habitat-restoration efforts by the Chesapeake Bay Program.
Mike Meier, who heads the reef program for the Marine Resources Commission, received the award from Gov. Allen, chairman of the Chesapeake Executive Council, which includes representatives of Virginia, Maryland and Pennsylvania.
Meier was cited for his efforts to develop new recreational-fishing reefs off Back River in Hampton and at the Degaussing Cell off the lower Eastern Shore. He also was cited for expanding the artificial reef off East Ocean View in Norfolk.
SPLENDID BOOK: To read George Reiger's new book, ``Heron Hill Chronicle,'' is to wish you lived on an Eastern Shore seaside farm and had this man's touch with nature.
This is the 16th book by the conservation editor of Field & Stream magazine and author of ``Wanderer on My Native Shore,'' a runner-up for a Pulitzer Prize a few years back.
``Heron Hill'' is the very human, personal account of George and Barbara Reiger's move from New York and Washington to a 67-acre farm near Locustville, on Virginia's Eastern Shore. But it is more. It's about how we care for the land we live on and the animals we share it with; it is about a place where ``time is measured in seasons, not seconds.''
Through it all come Reiger's supreme, science-based curiosity of nature and his conviction that self-reliance is the only path to wisdom, even when it means eating road-kill. The man lives his principles.
``Heron Hill'' is published by Lyons & Burford, contains 179 pages and sells for $19.95. It's worth more.
SHORT CASTS: Vernon Barrington is now running charter trips for striped bass out of Little Creek Marina in Norfolk. Skippering the Sea Hunter II, he concentrates along the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel. Barrington bases at Oregon Inlet, near Nags Head, most of the year. . . . Freshwater trout will again be stocked in the pond at Chesapeake's Northwest River Park, starting Tuesday. This is the second year of the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries' urban trout program. Trout between 8 and 10 inches will be stocked in the pond every two weeks until next spring. The fishing is free. But anglers are required to have a Virginia freshwater fishing license and a special trout-fishing stamp. You can get details by calling the park at 421-7151. . . . Mark Laboccetta and Jimmy Fry of Virginia Beach combined their efforts to catch a 12-pound black drum from the surf just north of Rudee Inlet, a most unusual catch. . . . John Galloway of Virginia Beach has earned a citation from the Virginia Salt Water Fishing Tournament with a 5-pound speckled trout pulled from Rudee Inlet. Andrew Denninger of Chesapeake scored with an 11 1/2-pound tautog at the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel. by CNB