Quote Originally Posted by smashdn View Post
Best news I've read in a while. Adam, thank you for being on here.

Do you think there is a need to better educate the general sportsman and angler in to the role of the commercial fisherman in this? I continually read sportfisherman voicing that commercial fishing should be banned on public waters, admittedly in connection with catfish, and that the commercial fishing is negatively impacting the "sport catfishing." Having read the studies from KDFWR hoop nets and blurbs on the KDFWR webpage about the findings from the ride-alongs with commercial fisherman I think that is a valuable narrative to get out there as to how the commercial fisherman are and will be an integral part of this "war on carp" equation.
In my opinion, in that particular case there needs to be more dialogue and interaction between biologists, commercial fishermen, and catfishermen. It’s been a huge topic of debate and there was a special committee appointed to sort out the issue, but there is still a lack of trust there and still a few topics to be decided. It’s a good example of one of the most difficult aspects of fisheries management. How should a fishery be managed when two or more user groups want different things from the same fishery? I’ve yet to discover a “perfect” management option in any fishery, but communication and openness builds trust and tends to reduce conflict.
I do agree that more education on the topic (how we collect data, what commercial fishermen catch, what harvest does to a fishery, etc) would be helpful for everyone involved. But without building trust, no one will believe what you’re saying in your education efforts (and rightly so).

Im always amazed at how understanding the sport anglers have been on ky and Barkley regarding commercial Asian carp fishermen. There have certainly been some issues and tangled props and cut nets, but I think everyone has realized how necessary these control efforts are.