SEND LETTERS HERE TO VOICE YOUR CONCERNS OVER PROPOSED BOWFISHING TOURNAMENT REGULATIONS; I Have been on the phone quite a bit today talking with many fisheries biologists about this. As I stated, the rule book was posted on the DNR site but the rules are not officially adopted. I do not know why they were put on the site before being officially adopted but they were. I relayed many bowfishers concerns over this such as, is it 10 per boat or per person. Fishing license revenue may be lost. Fewer people taking up bowfishing. I also relayed that some members want to do all we can to assure the fishery is here for years to come. If you want to make your feeling known it is best to write a letter. Please write to the following address and make your voice heard. The DNR is mainly interested is Illinois residents views but Im sure they will read all. If you are not familiar with the proposed regs I will paste them at the bottom of this post. IDNR FISHERIES DIVISION 1 NATURAL RESOURCES WAY SPRINGFIELD ILL. 62702 Section 810.95 BOWFISHING TOURNAMENT PERMIT AND TOURNAMENT HARVEST REGULATIONS a) A Bowfishing Tournament Permit from the Department of Natural Resources is required if: 1) The Bowfishing Tournament event is conducted in any of the waters listed in Section 810.45 or at any other public water (open to bowfishing – See 810.15(d)) named as a tournament site. 2) Special Length Limit Regulation Exemption Permits to the site-specific regulations for size limit (not to exceed the statewide statutory limits) are not allowed on identified waters listed in Section 810.45 with restrictive limits. A) The Mississippi, Ohio and Wabash Rivers are not eligible for permits that exempt participants from daily catch and size limits due to regulatory agreements with neighboring states. B) Statewide Bowfishing Tournament Harvest Limits for all waters -- No more than 10 native fish (all species in aggregate) daily tournament harvest (no culling) limit (all fish taken must be legal to take with bowfishing methods). All invasive fish (legal to take with bowfishing methods) have an unlimited take limit. b) Requests for a Bowfishing Tournament Permit shall be made on applications provided by the Department of Natural Resources, Division of Fisheries and available online on the IDNR and IFISHILLINOIS websites. Applications must be received not less than 30 days prior to the first tournament date and must be completely filled out or they will be rejected. c) A summary report containing the numbers of each fish species caught and the length of the tournament fishing (hours) must be provided to the Division of Fisheries in Springfield within 10 days. Copies of IDNR Bowfishing Tournament Permits must be in the possession of each individual participant at all times. d) Issuance or denial of a permit shall be based upon the following criteria: 1) The capability of the fishery resource to absorb the tournament with minimal impact to its well-being. The inclusion of no more than 10 native fish daily harvest limit (all legal to take with bowfishing methods). All invasive fish (legal to take with bowfishing methods) have an unlimited take limit. 2) The location of the tournament; special management zones on rivers and streams and waters with restrictive creel and length limits identified in Section 810.45 are not eligible for permits. 3) The evaluation of the adverse impacts resulting from the additional fishing pressure generated by the tournament on the fish population and the targeted fish species. The evaluation must demonstrate minimal and short-term impacts in order for the Department of Natural Resources to issue the permit. Specific items to be considered include: A) biological status of the fish population, including the species sought; B) length of the tournament; C) number of boats and anglers participating in the tournament; and D) safety of anglers and potential boater-user conflicts. 4) Appeals to denied permits must be made in writing to the IDNR Division of Fisheries within 10 days of receipt of the denial. Any supplemental infor mation requested must be included in the appeal.
Posted on: Mon, 12 Jan 2015 22:18:18 +0000
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015