Quote:
Originally Posted by Finfeatherfur
I don't get it Jeremy! Who says they are raping the oysters, you guys are out there more than I am. However, I am in Dularge more than you guys are and see the Oyster Navy departing the docks and that area supports oyster harvest 500 times more than Big Lake. Yet, the area is actually growing in oyster harvest year over year.
Either way, the oyster fisherman have a right to bid on the lease when the state opens the bottoms up for lease. And the state is trying to get these guys back up and running following a huge shut down last year from the spill. So, I hope that the states biologist are well recieved and the wishes and science of the biolgist is the deciding factor. Unlike the creel limit debate of Big Lake where the science went into the trash can, I will wait to see what develops!
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FFF...I am out there everyday, literally. I am a guide on the lake and talk to several of the oysterman on a regular basis. One of them is a guy a little younger than me. This guy has done this with his dad and uncles for years. He has tod me that they are raping the lake. Last year, oyster boats were bringing in over 1000, yes, this is accurate, 1000 sacks of oysters a day. This was from both Cameron and Hackberry seafood buyers. Now, with no reseeding, as in the east, how in the hell is an oyster supposed to have time grow. It takes an oyster 3 years to become mature enough to harvest for the 3" minimum in Big Lake. I asked my buddy if there are any "humps" left in the lake anymore, his response was probably not. While I know he has to make a living, there should still be some better management practices. Like Raymond said, it's the state's mentallity, to get as much as you can. A game warden friend of our lodge was telling us they were ticketing boats that were going back 2 or 3 times a day. It was worth it to the oysterman to pay the fine because they could afford to pay it with the profits of their 2 to 3 loads a day. The same guy would own 2 or more boats and just use those different tags. My buddy also suggested strongly that tonging should be and probabaly will be the way to do it next year. THe base of the reefs are there, but they are flat and barren. You can drag a leadhead across some of those reefs and not lose it.
BD