Taken from blog.
And, what do guides pay for the privilege of use of a public resource to the extent the rest of us are often perceived as unwelcome competition if we even show up in some of those times and places any more? I want the managers to tell us how much of the annual angling traffic on the best rivers we have left is accounted for by guides (they often fish too) and clients? What proportion of the total annual catch is accounted for by these people? That sort of data should be compiled by independent sources, not voluntary reports (if such a thing even exists any more). Are the commercial operators paying their fair share? What is a reasonable distribution of opportunity between commercial and non-commercial anglers? Does there need to be an overhaul of the current distribution of effort between commercial and non-commercial users? If not, why not? I’ll point out the tidal waters commercial recreational fishery sector has expanded to the point it is the completely dominant voice advising decision making federal government agents of the Department of Fisheries and Oceans. The freshwater steelhead scene, particularly in Skeena country, is showing the same evolutionary trends and that’s just on the classified waters where there are at least some spatial and temporal restrictions on the books. On unclassified waters and on classified waters outside the classified period, there are no restrictions. They weren’t warranted in 1990 but they’re more than two decade overdue today. Those non-classified times and places are freebees for the guides. How does that make sense?
If we look around the Atlantic salmon world it takes but a moment to appreciate desirable fishing exists only where effort is tightly restricted. Think Kola Peninsula, Norway, Iceland, and several of Quebec’s historically renowned north shore rivers. Nowhere in those blue ribbon opportunities is there anywhere near the guided effort and freedom of entry we see on almost every possible opportunity in BC. The simple fact is the fishing would not be anywhere near as attractive or marketable in all those other times and places otherwise. Are there lessons there that can be applied to some of our waters to salvage a bit of what was once intended to sustain that ill defined, shifting baseline concept labeled quality fishing opportunity?
The most eagerly sought big game species in the most high demand areas in British Columbia have been managed on a limited entry hunting basis since the 1970s and 80s. Almost every species of note is so managed today. It is unfathomable there would be open seasons and no restrictions on quads and all terrain vehicles, the terrestrial equivalent of jet boats. It is equally unacceptable there would ever be more than one licensed guide operating within a given territory. Every guide has a quota of animals his clients are permitted to harvest. The latter day gamesmanship of some angling guides promoting the “one and done” concept has been reality for hunting guides since the beginning of that industry’s time in BC. Why has there not been recognition of the parallels between supply and demand of game animals and the situation now prevalent on our remaining best steelhead rivers?
