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Responsible Sea Angling

By Ben Conway, author of the 'Dogfish Diary' blog (dogfishdiary.weebly.com/)

As anglers, we spend as much time by the sea as just about anyone and we can have big impacts on the places that we visit. There are two main ways in which anglers can create marine litter; either as part of fishing, by snap-offs and lost gear, or by failing to pick up our food wrappers, drinks bottles and bait wrappers once we have finished fishing. On the whole, sea anglers have gotten an awful lot better at picking up after themselves and the sport as a whole deserves credit for that, but there is still room for improvement as evidenced by a visit to any popular spot at a productive time of year.

What may be lacking for some anglers is the incentive to take responsibility for the proper disposal of their litter. They may see leaving it behind on the rocks or beach as a ‘victimless crime’ as the sea will eventually wash it away. This may be the case but the fact is that whatever ends up in the sea has a good chance of ending up in the food chain in some way. When marine life such as turtles and sea birds eat plastic items mistaking them for food, the plastics can become lodged in their stomachs. In severe cases, the blockage can prevent the animal feeding and it will die. This is particularly common with creatures like the leatherback turtle, which is known to eat plastic bags which it thinks are jellyfish. With the plague proportions of jellyfish around Britain’s coasts in recent years (and the devastating impacts they have on the supply of sandeels for bait), it would seem to be in our best interests to do what we can to protect one of their few predators!

In these current times, sea angling as a whole seems under threat, as much because of the lack of young people coming into the sport as the relative lack of fish to catch. With concerns such as these, it is easy to forget that there are plenty of people out there who are fundamentally against sea angling simply for what it is; a type of ‘bloodsport’ that they would like to see banned. Decreasing our shoreline footprint is a great way to stay off these peoples’ radar, give them less ammunition to attack us with, and also make sure that our public image is a positive one. There are plenty of cases out there of anglers being blanket banned from private land (or being charged for access) as the landowners have gotten tired of the litter problem. With a little thought and consideration, there is no need for situations like this. It is in our best interests to be seen as a safe, clean and responsible group of people, then if the anti-brigade do make sea angling a major target, there is favourable public opinion to back us up. A more favourable image may also attract more young people into the sport.

The main source of concern when it comes to angling litter is lost or discarded fishing line. Longer lengths of line can act like a death-trap underwater, snaring, disfiguring and killing all sorts of marine life. Fishing line is not biodegradable in any practical sense either so it remains potentially lethal until it is removed from the sea or buried under sediment. As anglers, it is our responsibility to make sure that we lose as little line as possible, which is sensible not only from an environmental perspective, but also from the point of view of economy. Line, end tackle and weights are not cheap and losing any more than is necessary is a waste of money. Experienced anglers will have long ago learnt the tricks of efficient fishing with minimal loss of gear but for beginners and intermediate anglers, this knowledge is often built up only through hard lessons.

There are a few basic principles to minimising lost tackle. Firstly, the correct tying of strong and appropriate knots, secondly; an understanding of the ground being fished over and potential snags, and thirdly; safe and competent casting. Good knots and safe casting (along with the proper use of a shockleader) is particularly important when mackerel feathering, which involves repeated casting, often using a comparatively heavy sinker. As well as not wanting to lose costly sets of feathers and lead weights, the safety of others has to be considered also. Many anglers have been injured when their neighbour’s feathers and weight snapped off due to a wild cast and the absence of a shockleader. A last important factor to bear in mind is to always check the knots on sets of feathers bought from a shop. Often the knots will be poorly tied and need retying if you want to keep your feathers and weight.

For many, responsible sea angling is second nature but for others, it may be hard to break bad habits, particularly if they have been doing them for a long time. This is understandable to an extent but it is worth bearing in mind that humanity as a whole is becoming more aware of the impacts it has on the environment and less tolerant of those who choose to disregard theirs. It is unfortunate that the actions of the careless few should reflect badly on the conscientious majority. So in conclusion, if you are one of those anglers who leaves their litter behind or finds it too much trouble to tie on a shockleader, I urge you to think again. A little consideration for the environment, wildlife, and other anglers is all that is being asked for and the benefits are cleaner fishing spots, a more favourable public perception of sea anglers, and less lost tackle and money saved.