Banning the removal of Sandvlei fish

[RobinF]

Guys, who would support the enforcement of a strictly catch and release policy at Sandvlei? I realise that not everyone will obide by it, but let's be honest, only a moron would actually eat a Sandvlei Leerie anyway.

Catch and release is getting more and more popular and I can only imagine what treasure we will have there in the future if we have a catch and release policy there.

Families would have endless fun with their kids catching fish that are in abundance, and the little one's will learn about conservation. I'm seriously thinking of raising that with the authorities, do I have support or am I alone here?

 

[Friknam]

I'd support that!

 

[Dillon]

Count me in.

 

[*BOKSLAGTER*]

I will support that one million times.

Im so jealous when i see how the people are fishing in the Eastern Cape estuaries...

Look at how people respect and enjoy Swartkops. Amazing place i heard.

Zandvlei can be the same...In about 10 years or so

 

[RobinF]

I grew up there, caught my best fish there. We still go back there as often as possible. Also, the population there is miniscule compared to us, and most guys there must work, and also because of the industries there, a lot of guys work shifts, so that keeps them off the water.

Beautiful rivers, they need to stay that way at all costs.

*BOKSLAGTER* wrote:

I will support that one million times.

Im so jealous when i see how the people are fishing in the Eastern Cape estuaries...

Look at how people respect and enjoy Swartkops. Amazing place i heard.

Zandvlei can be the same...In about 10 years or so

 

[Joker]

Catch and release in certain bodies of water is always a good idea. I'm sure most of the local guys who fished Zandvlei, many years ago, will remember the different species that was caught in the vlei.

That said, there are also some other factors to take into consideration. The pollution, to name but one.

Great idea non the less.

 

[Patrick]

Anyone who catches leeries for sport is already releasing them. Its those punks that are fishing them for commercial gain that you have to stop, and they are already breaking the laws with regards to size limits, quota and fishing methods. An extra law is going to make absolutely no difference to them as no one is there to enforce the laws that are already in place.

 

[camboy]

with all the pollution in the vlei... surely the fish cant taste that Lekka.

 

[Stormycape]

Patrick wrote:

Anyone who catches leeries for sport is already releasing them. Its those punks that are fishing them for commercial gain that you have to stop, and they are already breaking the laws with regards to size limits, quota and fishing methods. An extra law is going to make absolutely no difference to them as no one is there to enforce the laws that are already in place.

This is both very sad and very true.
SC

 

[Chicken of the Sea]

I've heard that since the Golden Algae Bloom last year some by-laws have been introduced. Apparently it IS strictly catch and release at the moment with the use of live bait being banned. Hooks are supposed to be barbless too. Sounds good but I can't see it being well enforced.

 

[DieterW]

Stormycape wrote:

Patrick wrote:

Anyone who catches leeries for sport is already releasing them. Its those punks that are fishing them for commercial gain that you have to stop, and they are already breaking the laws with regards to size limits, quota and fishing methods. An extra law is going to make absolutely no difference to them as no one is there to enforce the laws that are already in place.

This is both very sad and very true.
SC

Be careful it's a small step from keep ban to total ban.

 

[RobinF]

If a total ban is what is needed to save the fish, I think that would be acceptable.

As for "An extra law is going to make absolutely no difference to them as no one is there to enforce the laws that are already in place", that gets said about almost every step in the direction of saving our marine resources. Personally, I believe it can be policed, the residents there themselves are very vigilant and all they need is a cell number of the responsible official and we are on our way to trying to do something constructive instead of just giving up.

 

[BigBen]

I would not support it...

I woud rather opt for the mouth to be open always, so the eco system can be restored and the fish become edible as the vlei wud be 'washed' always with the ebb and flo of seawater to it..

And the fish will become seasonal according to nature and not resident due to the vlei being closed 90%vof the time..

Imagine...Those big cob, steene,leeries and mullet being fed real seawater....and ofcourse them returning there to spawn like a normal cycle demands

 

 

[RobinF]

I don't think there much chance that the mouth will be opened all the time, it appears that it will require constant mechanical assistance to keep that open. I think the cost would be an issue. The fact is that there are only so many fish in that water and if the removal of those fish is not curtailed, we could very well find no fish in there at all eventually.

Make no mistake, an open mouth would be the absolute first prize, but the cards are what they are, protecting the resource from complete collapse is vital for the future.

 

[Pylstert]

BigBen wrote:

I would not support it...

I woud rather opt for the mouth to be open always, so the eco system can be restored and the fish become edible as the vlei wud be 'washed' always with the ebb and flo of seawater to it..

And the fish will become seasonal according to nature and not resident due to the vlei being closed 90%vof the time..

Imagine...Those big cob, steene,leeries and mullet being fed real seawater....and ofcourse them returning there to spawn like a normal cycle demands

 

was the mouth always open? many estuaries naturally close at certain times of the year or sometimes for many years, is Zandvlei not perhaps not the same?

 

[RobinF]

I may be wrong, so please correct me. The mouth sometimes opens with a big rain, the mouth is really small though. It is occasionally opened my the Municipality. I would image that a freakish high tide may also open it up. It's silted up completely for most of the year and the water is really quite brak-ish.

 

[BigBen]

Pylstert wrote:

BigBen wrote:

I would not support it...

I woud rather opt for the mouth to be open always, so the eco system can be restored and the fish become edible as the vlei wud be 'washed' always with the ebb and flo of seawater to it..

And the fish will become seasonal according to nature and not resident due to the vlei being closed 90%vof the time..

Imagine...Those big cob, steene,leeries and mullet being fed real seawater....and ofcourse them returning there to spawn like a normal cycle demands

 

was the mouth always open? many estuaries naturally close at certain times of the year or sometimes for many years, is Zandvlei not perhaps not the same?

The 'RICH' live along these banks and the investment is being protected...They'll complain about the stench the vlei gives off but will not support the regulating of the waterflo..


 

 

[Joker]

The moth, in days gone by, were left opened. It was only with the developement of Marina Da Gama that the vlei's water level needed to be kept constant.

Believe it or not, but the "other" vlei, Zeekoei vlei, was also a nusery for the False Bay fish...

That vlei also suffered the same fate when humans started messing around with weirs, etc.

 

[RobinF]

Thanks Joker, that's interesting stuff.

Hey Bigben, I don't want to dispute your comment, but Marina Da Gama is not the gold and diamonds area one would think. The most expensive properties on the water go for 2.3Mil-3.0Mil. Compare that to Knysna's Thesen island....5Mil up to.... well, the sky's the limit.

Why don't they support the regulating of the water? That is a really interesting comment you've made. (Regulating the water ensures the survivability, cleans the crap out etc.)

 

[Bumshot]

I fish Zandvlei 2-3 times a week, trying different techniques and flies.

There are still a lot of leeries around, but they are tiny (<200mm)

So in my opinion, we shouldn't give up on Zandvlei yet, and we should do whatever we can do clean up that place. The general state of the vlei is appalling and none of the promised made last year April were kept. I fished there last week, and I only had about an hour to fish, so I was in such a rush that I bit the tips of my leader off when changing lures. Even that little exposure to the water made me feel terrible the next day. So maybe it’s not a bad idea for those people to eat the fish, as I am convinced that they will die when they eat it

Regarding the opening of the mouth, I heard that it cost R20k at a time. So I don’t know whether paying to fish is an option, especially if it keeps the riff-raff out