Illegal fishing: Many getting hooked

PUB opening up new legal fishing spots as the number of anglers caught fishing illegally grows
Teh Joo Lin, Straits Times 28 Feb 10;

At least once a week, often under the cover of darkness, a 26-year-old undergraduate goes fishing at the MacRitchie Reservoir, casting his line at an illegal spot.

The young man, who calls himself a 'professional poacher', takes a 11/2-hour trek through forests with friends, risking snake bites and being caught by park rangers.

Asked why he does not fish at an approved spot at the reservoir, he replied: 'No fish to catch. More and more are fishing illegally because there's a lack of places.'

Indeed, the number of people being netted for illegal fishing is growing. Last year, 488 summons were issued, up from 399 in 2008. In 2007, 336 tickets were handed out.

The infringements mainly concern fishing outside designated areas and using live bait that can pollute the water.

Noting the growing interest in fishing, however, the authorities have also hatched new fishing spots to hook anglers.

A PUB spokesman said another two spots - at the Pandan Reservoir and Jurong Lake - will be up by the second half of the year.

Currently, designated areas exist in the MacRitchie, Lower Peirce, Upper and Lower Seletar, Kranji and Bedok reservoirs, as well as in Jurong Lake.

The new development is part of a long-term blueprint to change waterways into 'beautiful and vibrant community spaces'.

The spokesman said: 'In the future, instead of designating grounds, we will allow fishing at most parts of the reservoir except where it is designated as a non-fishing zone.'

Fishing enthusiasts say some break the law because of overfishing in the sanctioned areas.

Mr Samuel Liu, 28, who runs a commercial fishing pond at Bottle Tree Park in Yishun, said: 'After so long, there's no more fish there. Some people also lay nets, which end up 'spooking off' the fish in the entire area. So people will go and find new spots.'

Another keen angler, lecturer Benjamin Gay, 36, pointed out that the fishes are 'all hiding at the illegal spots'.

But will more legal spots rein in illegal practices?

Sports Fishing Association president Chin Chi Khiong said some anglers are thrill-seekers who deliberately look for spots unknown to others.

'Humans are greedy by nature. If they can catch 100 a day, if they can catch 1,000 a day... very few people will think, 'It's enough'.'

Still, zoo curator Ang Cheng Chye said increasing the number of fishing grounds is a good idea.

This will help 'reduce the likelihood of anglers carving their way through the forests', he said, adding that the forays damage vegetation and disturb wildlife.

He suggested the use of fishing permits to govern the numbers and sizes of fish that can be removed from the reservoirs.

'However, this requires increased manpower to police the areas to prevent abuse of the system,' he said, adding that educating the anglers is also important.

Anglers do not think freeing up more spots for fishing spells bad news for the eco-diversity balance.

For one thing, the younger set of anglers prefer to practise catch-and-release with artificial lures.

No pollutive live bait is used and, as the catch is returned to the water, there is also no danger of depleting stocks, which can hurt the eco-system.

Mr Gay, who usually releases his catch, explained that the thrill lies in the fight with the fish. 'Those who do catch and release have been fishing for a long time. Bringing the fish home and cooking it is no big deal to them.

'You see the fish swim away... It's quite a nice thing to do.'

Some anglers intent on getting better bites are also turning to commercial fishing ponds. There are an estimated five to seven of these here.

Mr N. Mohan, 51, was at one such place at Bottle Tree Park in Yishun two weeks ago.

Speaking after he snared a red-tailed catfish weighing more than 7kg, the self-employed man said: 'I have tried fishing in a reservoir, but it's not exciting.

'Most likely, the designated areas are not infested with fish. Unless you want to go there and fish illegally. But why break the law?'

Additional reporting by Ng Hui Ying