BSA MCZ News & Discussion

[BSA]

re: BSA MCZ News & Discussion

Recruitment Statement
The British Spearfishing Association (BSA) can be the National organization that represents all spear fishers in the UK.
Although our main focus is often seen to be organising the National Spearfishing Championships, our new primary focus is to promote the growth of spearfishing as well as to protect the interests of our unique activity at a national level.
The B.S.A. have been and will continue to be, very active in defending the rights of all spear fishers and ensuring that all spear fishers can continue to enjoy fair and equitable access to the natural resources around our coast. We also believe in helping to contribute in making sure that those resources are as healthy as possible. The B.S.A. is recognised by Government and Fisheries Managers, and had representation on the recent MCZ project. We will continue to maintain and build relationships with the relevant authorities to ensure that spearfishers have a voice whenever decisions affecting us are made.
The B.S.A. is currently developing a Safety Training certificate. Also in development is a spearfishing course to further develop knowledge and skill in spearfishing. These training courses are at the present time in development but together with the new membership options, they will ensure that the B.S.A promotes and maintains the highest standards, both in safety and participation whilst providing membership choice for everyone at all levels of experience.
So why should a spear fisher who is not interested in competitions join the B.S.A.?
· Strength in numbers; become part of the only organisation representing spear fishers in the UK, making sure we have a credible voice when important decisions are made which may affect us all.
· Take part in re-moulding the BSA so it better represents your interests.
· On the social side, form local clubs, meet other divers for dives and other social events and pick the brains of some of the country's top divers.
· Insurance: All B.S.A. full members are covered by the B.S.A. third party liability insurance, for peace of mind should an accident happen.
· Twice yearly magazine "Crystal Clear" with spearfishing stories from the UK and around the world plus hints, tips and recipes.
· Club discounts with major spearfishing suppliers.
See B.S.A. Membership for further details.
Spear fishers are a very diverse group, and we believe all spear fishers whatever their particular interest or motivation should be free to enjoy the fisheries around our coast, in a safe and legal manner, in clean waters, with healthy and sustainable fish stocks.
This is an opportunity to help build an association together which represents all of our interests in spearfishing in the UK … now and into the future. Join us now and help us achieve this goal.

For more information, visit our website: British Spearfishing Association Home


I would like to personally thank artiz for his past work on the sub committee. I know we struggled to agree on the content of the Recruitment Statement with the BSA committee but it was still your idea

Kind Regards

BSA Chairman

Steven Mullineaux

 

[Mr. X]

re: BSA MCZ News & Discussion

The new BSA Aims & Objectives could do with some work IMHO.

Chairman's report Dated 20-10-2012

NEW AIMS AND OBJECTIVES​

• To support all forms of legal spearfishing.
  ...
• To discourage spearfishing using artificial breathing aids.

Those two aims are contradictory. Ethical relativism?

e.g.
spearing on a breath (holier than thou) > competition spearing (holier than thou) > SCUBA spearing

I don't use SCUBA but the late Old Man Dave once made a good case for it (even though he had long ago switched entirely to breath hold), from a position of experience & knowledge, rather convenient gut reaction.

I'm not keen on competitive spearing but I don't feel the need to restrict the activities others who love it. United we stand...

 

[kevind]

re: BSA MCZ News & Discussion

Thanks Steve.

The new BSA Aims & Objectives could do with some work IMHO.

Good point Mr X, its something we are going to have to sort out. As with all changes it will need to be by a vote so now I just need to remember to put forward a proposal in 10 months time :duh
God bless democracy!

 

[scottwilson]

re: BSA MCZ News & Discussion

Great thread guys. I for one have no problem with the BSA or comps. In fact I hope the BSA continue to post on here keeping us non members up to date.

artiz I know you speak from the heart but you might find more people will sit up and listen to what you have say if you tone it down and calm down a bit.

We all need to work together with this...

 

[Jonny250]

re: BSA MCZ News & Discussion

hey folks, just to let you know that i am about to start cleaning up this thread a little. please don't post here just for now. Thanks.
OK. Done.
I have moved some posts to either a new thread on Spearfishing competitions, or Spearfishing - are we under threat, or to a private thread for the other mod's to check. Nothing has been deleted. If you think a post has been moved to the incorrect thread then please let us know and we can review it, thanks.

 

[BSA]

re: BSA MCZ News & Discussion

A follow-up report from the BSA Fisheries Officer:

In response to some of the comments now moved to the "spearfishing are we under threat" thread I thought it might be a good idea to try and explain further about MCZs, their designation, the legislation behind them and the BSAs role in the consultation process.

Powers to designate Marine Conservation Zones (MCZs)were created in the Marine and Coastal Access Act 2009.

The Marine and Coastal Access Act 2009 is a large and ambitious piece of legislation, however it was not brought in exclusively to create MCZs, although that was one of the parts that received the most publicity. MCZs are in fact a very small part of what it does. This is not the place to bore everyone with details, but suffice to say it covers amongst other things; marine planning, licencing (aggregate extraction, dumping. windfarms etc) the creation of the MMO, replacement of Sea Fisheries Committees with IFCAs, fisheries management, enforcement etc etc. The printed Act is a couple of inches thick and I can tell you from experience that it does NOT make for riveting bedtime reading.

As explained in an earlier post, the current round of MCZs, if approved, will be designated for specific features or habitats, and measures brought in the protect these. These measures must be appropriate, proportional and backed by evidence.

In England the sites were suggested by 4 regional projects. The BSA had a specific representative on the SW project (Finding Sanctuary) but was also kept fully informed of what was going on in the other projects, and input information where necessary.

The regional projects finished over a year ago, so calls for immediate representation on them are a little uninformed.

A few sites were suggested as "reference areas", which would be no take zones, but there was a real will in all the regional projects to be very careful where these were put and keep them as small as possible to minimise disruption. None of them would have impacted spearfishing significantly.

Of the 127 sites recommended by the regional projects in England, 31 are being taken forward (none of which are reference zones) These are currently being consulted on. These sites are NOT no take zones and talk of "when they become no take is incidental" is simply uninformed scaremongering, the legislation just does not work like that.

Wales has taken a slightly different approach and will probably put forward 3 or 4 "highly protected" sites. These were suggested by a less stakeholder led approach than in England, and there will be a further consultation on them in April. Again, talk of "huge areas being lost to spearfishing" is just scaremongering. If you think a proposed MCZ is going to impact your spearfishing, please let us know, preferably with any suggestions you may have for ways its impact could be minimized.

The BSA has excellent contacts at a National level, both in Government and NGOs (including conservation NGOs). We do our best to keep people informed of what is going on, but it is also up to individuals to educate themselves. We will never be able to be at ALL consultation meetings etc due to limited resources. The important thing is to be "in the loop" so resources can be targeted to areas where there may be an issue.

There have been claims made that representation from the BSA is not "appropriate". In response to that I would say that spearfishers cover a very broad range of interests and motivations, but a common theme is to basically be left alone to enjoy the pastime they love. Any restriction on spearfishing would hit all spearfishers, regardless of their motivation. When in discussion with Fisheries Managers or Conservation NGOs etc the BSA has never claimed to speak for all spearfishers (or even all BSA members), but has simply tried to put across the simple message of spearfishings lack of impact on the environment, and the argument that spearfishers should enjoy fair and equitable access to the resources around our coast. We do not make moral judgments on peoples reasons for spearfishing. If it is legal and not damaging the environment then it is all good.

There is no shadowy conspiracy looking to ban spearfishing, but a strong national body is useful for dealing with all sorts of issues, misunderstandings and conflicts, both with fisheries managers and the wider marine community.

Finally, whenever I see spearfishers arguing among themselves over ethics etc, I always think of this scene from one of my favourite films;
Cheers
Dave

 

[grantl]

British Spearfishing Association Announcements

No mention of Marine Protected Areas in Scotland? Is BSA engaged in any way with SNH etc. on the protected areas in Scotland?

 

[artiz]

re: BSA MCZ News & Discussion

A follow-up report from the BSA Fisheries Officer:

In response to some of the comments now moved to the "spearfishing are we under threat" thread I thought it might be a good idea to try and explain further about MCZs, their designation, the legislation behind them and the BSAs role in the consultation process.

Powers to designate Marine Conservation Zones (MCZs)were created in the Marine and Coastal Access Act 2009.

The Marine and Coastal Access Act 2009 is a large and ambitious piece of legislation, however it was not brought in exclusively to create MCZs, although that was one of the parts that received the most publicity. MCZs are in fact a very small part of what it does. This is not the place to bore everyone with details, but suffice to say it covers amongst other things; marine planning, licencing (aggregate extraction, dumping. windfarms etc) the creation of the MMO, replacement of Sea Fisheries Committees with IFCAs, fisheries management, enforcement etc etc. The printed Act is a couple of inches thick and I can tell you from experience that it does NOT make for riveting bedtime reading.

As explained in an earlier post, the current round of MCZs, if approved, will be designated for specific features or habitats, and measures brought in the protect these. These measures must be appropriate, proportional and backed by evidence.

In England the sites were suggested by 4 regional projects. The BSA had a specific representative on the SW project (Finding Sanctuary) but was also kept fully informed of what was going on in the other projects, and input information where necessary.

The regional projects finished over a year ago, so calls for immediate representation on them are a little uninformed.

A few sites were suggested as "reference areas", which would be no take zones, but there was a real will in all the regional projects to be very careful where these were put and keep them as small as possible to minimise disruption. None of them would have impacted spearfishing significantly.

Of the 127 sites recommended by the regional projects in England, 31 are being taken forward (none of which are reference zones) These are currently being consulted on. These sites are NOT no take zones and talk of "when they become no take is incidental" is simply uninformed scaremongering, the legislation just does not work like that.

Wales has taken a slightly different approach and will probably put forward 3 or 4 "highly protected" sites. These were suggested by a less stakeholder led approach than in England, and there will be a further consultation on them in April. Again, talk of "huge areas being lost to spearfishing" is just scaremongering. If you think a proposed MCZ is going to impact your spearfishing, please let us know, preferably with any suggestions you may have for ways its impact could be minimized.

The BSA has excellent contacts at a National level, both in Government and NGOs (including conservation NGOs). We do our best to keep people informed of what is going on, but it is also up to individuals to educate themselves. We will never be able to be at ALL consultation meetings etc due to limited resources. The important thing is to be "in the loop" so resources can be targeted to areas where there may be an issue.

There have been claims made that representation from the BSA is not "appropriate". In response to that I would say that spearfishers cover a very broad range of interests and motivations, but a common theme is to basically be left alone to enjoy the pastime they love. Any restriction on spearfishing would hit all spearfishers, regardless of their motivation. When in discussion with Fisheries Managers or Conservation NGOs etc the BSA has never claimed to speak for all spearfishers (or even all BSA members), but has simply tried to put across the simple message of spearfishings lack of impact on the environment, and the argument that spearfishers should enjoy fair and equitable access to the resources around our coast. We do not make moral judgments on peoples reasons for spearfishing. If it is legal and not damaging the environment then it is all good.

There is no shadowy conspiracy looking to ban spearfishing, but a strong national body is useful for dealing with all sorts of issues, misunderstandings and conflicts, both with fisheries managers and the wider marine community.

Finally, whenever I see spearfishers arguing among themselves over ethics etc, I always think of this scene from one of my favourite films;
Cheers
Dave
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gb_qHP7VaZE

Phew... that's a relief then. The BSA's fisheries officer has got all the bases covered after all?
If I can just get this straight though... so you are saying we don't currently have a National/public stakeholder voice or representation in Wales, Scotland and the 3 other regional projects then... you are just kept informed? Why do you think that this is sufficient for the future interests of spearfishing in the UK?
Regarding those excellent contacts with NGO's like the Marine Conservation Society etc... did they also invite the BSA to join their march on Parliament on the 25th February 2013 to raise public awareness and demand all 127 sites rather than the 31 you mention? Perhaps that 'shadowy conspiracy' you also mentioned is about to emerge from the shadows?
You also forgot to mention the much larger SAC's which are also legislated/managed by Europe... do we have any representation in Europe or are we also just kept informed? Perhaps you could explain a bit further about those please?
Having missed out on a co-ordinated, early stage national involvement of designating MPZ's but more importantly/effective for future negotiations by having an organised National/public stakeholder status from the beginning. I wondered if the BSA had considered attempting to put that right at the current public consultation process via DEFRA which will close on the 31st March 2013. I have attached the appropriate form View attachment mcz-annex-h-121213-1.doc for your consideration.

Lastly, you sound as if you need some help Dave... why don't you ask/announce for it here?

Regards

 

[kkdavids]

re: BSA MCZ News & Discussion

Thanks for the update Dave and the clarity around a few of the issues..its appreciated by most of us.

 

[BSA]

re: BSA MCZ News & Discussion

No mention of Marine Protected Areas in Scotland? Is BSA engaged in any way with SNH etc. on the protected areas in Scotland?

BSA Fisheries Officer here;
Scotland has followed a similar process to Wales in that it is far less stakeholder led than the English process (and obviously the powers come from different legislation)
The consultation on the proposed sites will be this summer, and the BSA will be submitting a response (as we will for the English and Welsh consultations).
Looking at the proposals, so far I can see no problems for spearfishers. The sites will be designated in a similar way to England (ie for specific features), so activities that do not impact the feature will be allowed to continue. As with England, these sites are NOT no take zones
As with Wales (and England) if anyone has concerns about specific sites please get in touch

cheers
Dave

 

[grantl]

British Spearfishing Association Announcements

The consultation on the proposed sites will be this summer, and the BSA will be submitting a response (as we will for the English and Welsh consultations).
Looking at the proposals, so far I can see no problems for spearfishers.

Agreed - I've been keeping an eye on the progress so far and in many ways anglers/Spearos etc. may well benefit.
One of the areas I've dived for many years has been suggested as a reserve and I'm in complete agreement over the proposals. I've not seen any suggestion spearing will be treated any differently than angling.

 

[Balpherus]

re: BSA MCZ News & Discussion

Thank you for the information, I'll put the heavey document down now you've highlighted the important parts....(I was really eager to read a lengthy drafted policey, too bad)

As a matter of interest, I thought that there would be two threads; one for your (BSA) announcements, and another one for discussion about your announcements?

Either way I'm happy to be better informed.


............. it's in the shadows ..................... a monger of scares...........

Kind regards

(Real name)

 

[kevind]

re: BSA MCZ News & Discussion

Hi Balpherus
After chatting to one of the moderators, we will be putting up a new thread for each different announcement. These can then be discussed in the same thread so that the discussion follows naturally from the announcement. This thread started with the MCZ news so we can keep this thread for MCZ news and hence the follow-up post was put here.
Regards
Kevin

 

[Balpherus]

re: BSA MCZ News & Discussion

Hi Kevin,

That's a great idea, thank you for clearing that up for me.

Interesting information about the development that is in motion. I await to hear more with a slightly biased interest in Scotlands proposals later in the year.

Kind regards

Philip

 

[BSA]

re: BSA MCZ News & Discussion

Hi Kevin,

That's a great idea, thank you for clearing that up for me.

Interesting information about the development that is in motion. I await to hear more with a slightly biased interest in Scotlands proposals later in the year.

Kind regards

Philip

Here is a bit of light reading about the Scottish MPA project;
http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Resource/0041/00411306.pdf
Guidelines for selecting & developing MPAs
http://www.snh.org.uk/pdfs/publications/commissioned_reports/547.pdf

The last link has a map of some of the proposed new MCZs

cheers
dave

 

[Jonny250]

On the whole, these MCZ's seem like a great idea - if they go hand in hand with looking after the long-term interests of commercial fishermen too. I would love to see them in the channel islands.

For info, i have just re-cleaned the thread and also renamed it in line with the plan to use different threads for different discussions. [hope that's ok with you KevinD].

 

[kevind]

Super, thanks Jonny!

 

[SurfnSpear]

All, please send an objection before Friday 8th February!
Appreciated.
Should You Be Dreading The Dredge | Surfers Against Sewage

 

[Mr. X]

FYI I just emailed them with my concerns.

 

[artiz]

On the whole, these MCZ's seem like a great idea - if they go hand in hand with looking after the long-term interests of commercial fishermen too. I would love to see them in the channel islands.

For info, i have just re-cleaned the thread and also renamed it in line with the plan to use different threads for different discussions. [hope that's ok with you KevinD].

Other than 'catching fish' what future interests do you think spearfishing has in common with commercial fishing?