EA doing their job

[Pete Marshall]

Ray,
you make some fine points and I agree with you personally and made many of these points as an individual during the consultation last year. AFAIK both the SATA and the AT that represent anglers in the Sustainable Eel group make these points as well.
However, given that the present legal situation is that licensed Eel trapping continues in many places, I do not see why I or any other taxpayer should actively subsidise it, which at present we do. The consultation is asking if people agree that the EA should charge the full costs of issuing licenses for Eels and other species to those applying for the licenses, not if licenses should be issued at all, hence my response.

I am sure you understand this, but seem to be having a go at anyone who actively seeks to work with the EA, you are free to attack them, but please respect those of us who would rather try to work with them.

Like all government organisations the EA are far from perfect, but they are all there is at present.

Personally I have found all the fisheries officers in the Severn catchment to be a pretty decent bunch of men and woman, doing a thankless job caught often between their own personal commitment to the environment and the law of the land. They may be very different people down south, I don't know, but as far as our local people I will try and work with them for the benefit of our catchment.

 

[Ray Walton]

Pete...I do communicate with the EA and NE consistantly down here and agree that some employees of the EA/NE are ok and environmentaly/fish friendly. However, they are not the ones that call the shots and soon duck out on sensitive issues when it comes to the crunch. Many EA/NE 'goodies' are too afraid to speak out or do anything that may upset their superiors and put their jobs at risk.
In my opinion, down here at least, most of the damage and destruction to the Hampshire Avon and its wild inhabitants has and is caused directly or indirectly by the EA/NE themselves. It has always been an ongoing cycle of 'destroy and repair' over and over again on a continuous basis. Whether this is to keep themselves in long term work has to be taken into consideration.

 

[David Gauntlett]

Jobs for the boys....and they are the boys for the job...handy that...sorted

Keep at 'em Ray, keep 'em on their toes mate

Some time back on here, during another of these discussion about the madness that is the EA, we were told by a man who knows that EA employees were forbidden to log on to this site whenever a big flap was going on involving them. (I am fairly sure the guy worked for the EA himself, but sadly I can't remember who it was)

My point is that this sort of reaction speaks volumes to me. It certainly suggests that what we rant about on here does get heard by those who matter. A forum as large as this one seems to be taken fairly seriously by such bodies, so in my opinion it certainly isn't a waste of breath to have your say on here and hopefully gather support on any particular issue.

Cheers, Dave.

 

[Ray Walton]

Regarding Eels and the EA/EA conservation of eel populations....It is a mockery that a Coarse Angler who pays £27 for a rod licence will be prosecuted and given a criminal record if he is caught killing 'one' eel!
On the other hand, if you pay the same EA £13 for a commercial eel trapping license, you can kill thousands of endangered eels or elvers legally or as many as you want and sell them for profit.
The Eel conservation minded EA certainly put a stop to a 'single' angler taking away an eel without any consultation process, but left the commercial eel murders to carry on killing them in there thousands!
That's what i call EA conservation of Eel Trappers 'business' interests, and not Cites Red Listed Endangered Eel populations... and to which now need protection 'against' the EA themselves!
Even with the Hydro electric power river schemes, the EA will still allow the operator to mash, chop up and kill a 100 eels a day as well as SAC protected migratory and coarse fish.
Sorry, but some don't give a ****!

 

[David Hall]

Regarding Eels and the EA/EA conservation of eel populations....It is a mockery that a Coarse Angler who pays £27 for a rod licence will be prosecuted and given a criminal record if he is caught killing 'one' eel!

!

gross hypocrisy.

 

[Paul Boote]

Not defending the EA in "My Country, right or wrong" fashion, now, but the bods in the EA do know, as I do, that some monkeys in our number will be on the commercially fishing for eels with rod and line jag unless legally warned (if not actually wholly deterred); we're a pretty selfish, lawless, F-U lot that tries to get away with virtually anything unless threatened with nailing and jailing.