THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, January 14, 1996 TAG: 9601110178
SECTION: CAROLINA COAST PAGE: 05 EDITION: FINAL
LENGTH: Long : 197 lines
My secret recipe for the good life in 1996, as I've done in 1995 - holding my fishing pole in the ocean (surf or pier) on a beautiful day, not caring whether I catch a fish or not that day. There is always tomorrow and many more when the fish decide to run.
Just watching the ocean is good enough for me!
Patty Pryce
Kill Devil Hills Recreation problems
I and many other parents of Dare County athletes are concerned about the management of Parks and Recreation.
The problems experienced during the recent soccer season are:
(1) the notice of enrollment not provided in a timely manner,
(2) the team placements not maintained from the previous year and
(3) the poor public relations of the department's staff. By informing you now, we hope to alleviate similar problems in the future.
Our solutions for preventing later enrollment notices are as follows:
1. Place an advertisement 3-4 weeks prior to the last day of enrollment.
2. Distribute enrollment fliers at the public schools 2-3 weeks prior to the last day of enrollment.
3. Send reminder enrollment post cards to all former Dare County athletes.
I believe these solutions will provide Parks and Recreation with early enrollment figures. Early enrollment will allow a better basis for team allocation and coach recruitment. In the long run, the collection of sports' revenues improves.
In addition, the most pressing issue is team selection and placement. We believe the teams should be maintained from one season to the next. Team maintenance allows for cohesion and camaraderie and prevents team ``stacking.'' In those rare cases where movement from one team to another is necessary, Parks and Recreation must randomly place the athlete on another team. Parents not happy with a current coach cannot be allowed to request a move to a specific team.
In summary, I believe a well-managed Department of Parks and Recreation could have prevented these above described issues from arising. Parents need to be kept informed. Communication improves the public's perception of government.
Cyndy Winstead
Kitty Hawk
Tape the commissioners
Our Dare County Commissioners could learn from the Nags Head commissioners.
I am sure there are times when the Nags Head commissioners don't agree, however, their end result leads to excellent decisions, and a united front once a decision is made. Not so for our county leaders. Their decisions appear to lack depth of thought (i.e. the County Complex fiasco) and result in public disagreement with fellow commissioners, particularly Shirley Hassell. I have not had an opportunity to meet Commissioner Hassell, but many of the decisions she questions and disagrees with appear to warrant more review.
I have not attended a Dare County Commissioners' meeting, but my wife recently did. She had planned on addressing the commissioners, however, public comments were cut off after a couple of minutes, and she never had an opportunity to speak. She did stay for the entire meeting, and upon departing said she wanted to scream and cry at the same time. My wife, a registered nurse (normally very calm and levelheaded), was clearly upset with the whole process. She did say that Commissioner Hassell asked some very good questions during the meeting.
It might be enlightening if more citizens attended the Dare County Commissioners' meetings. This is difficult because of the meeting times and available space. However, we do have cable TV channel 20 available for civic use. Why not videotape the open meetings, and replay them at published times? This could be an educational project of our school civics or government classes. It would give our citizens the opportunity to observe firsthand the performance of our elected and hired officials who spend our tax dollars.
Kenneth D. Johnson
Colington Harbour No simple issues
In answer to Jeff Oden's letter: It is a shame that Jeff considers all commercial fishermen to be of the same thought that all fish are cyclic. That concept gives an easy excuse to any biological problem. No fish - no problem - it is simply a biological problem called cyclic. It is just cycles. No need for action. No need for regulation. Just cycles.
I wish that the problem was a simple issue. It is not! All of the crying or moaning does not take away from the fact that croakers, spots and juvenile weakfish are coming back at the same time. Fish extruders, escape panels, sanctuaries, the ban of fly nets, and many other reductions are in fact the reason for the return of these fish. No guessing game; just the good work of concerned commercial fishermen, managers, biologists, academia, and yes, recreational fishermen. That's it. If we try to make it so . . . So shall it be . . .
Jeff's comment about the NRA and Cape Point - I have fished Cape Point for 20 years and I have never seen a fistfight on Cape Point. I will not demean myself to take this issue further, but I would tell you this: If you see a firearm on Cape Point or in our national park, then you should call the National Park Service . . . Dial 911. It is against National Park Service Law to have a firearm in Cape Hatteras National Seashore or on Cape Point. Cape Point is unique because so many fishermen can work together. All of us trying to reach the same goal.
I wonder how Costa Rica's tourist industry will fare when there are no billfish to attract the USA's sportfishermen. Will there be an article telling of the demise of that industry; of the thousands of jobs sacrificed so that a few may profit?
Bob Eakes
Buxton A different view
In reference to Jeff Oden's letter in the Carolina Coast, as a recreational adviser on the ASMFC weakfish panel, I hold a different view of our weakfish problem.
Weakfish have been harvested on the East Coast since the 1800s and are targeted by both commercial and recreational fishermen. However, East Coast landings declined from about 80 million pounds in 1980 to seven million pounds in 1994.
In 1980 recreational fishermen caught 42 million pounds of weakfish. The average length was 21 inches with plenty of fish in the 25-to-35-inch class. The average weight was 3.5 pounds. In 1993, the average length was 13 inches and the fish weighed 3/4 pound.
Most major publications document the serious decline in our national fishery stocks. Be it Worldwatch, National Geographic, The Economist, The Wall Street Journal, The Virginian-Pilot, The News and Observer, etc. Review of state records over the last 15 years reveals significant declines in both commerical and recreational landings. Commercial declines include: weakfish, 79 percent; spot, 67 percent; river herring, 92 percent; croaker, 84 percent and summer flounder, 75 percent. Recreational declines include: Spanish mackerel, 70 percent; summer flounder 77 percent; bluefish, 89 percent; red drum, 85 percent, and weakfish, 97 percent.
The reasons are many, including polluted water, loss of habitat and overfishing - be it commercial, recreational or a combination of the two. Overfishing can be controlled, however, and the resource can recover as shown by the recent resurgence of the striped bass fishery.
Those numbers also indicate that management failed in the 1980s. The reason? Compliance with the plans was voluntary. However, that changed with the passage of the Atlantic Coastal Fisheries Cooperative Management Act in 1993 which mandates compliance to the ASMFC Fishery Manage Plans. If we comply with the plans for other species, like we did with striped bass, those fish stocks should also recover. Therefore, it is difficult to understand why some commercial fishermen, who are not supposed to be against sensible regulation, mounted a drive to have our state withdraw from ASMFC. Let's hope they are not successful.
The letter states that the 100 gill net boats and 50 trawlers dwindled to 15 trawlers and 25 gill netters due to diversification, meaning the fleet switched to other species of fish by choice. I could accept that theory if weakfish stocks remained robust and stable, but they didn't. Their range compressed badly over time and state commercial landings fell from 20 million to 3.5 million pounds a year from 1980 to 1994. When a species becomes overfished and is no longer profitable, commercial boats abandon that species and target one that is profitable. Economics compels them to do so.
I do agree that fish run in cycles, however, advances in technology, such as vessel design, horsepower, electronics, hydraulics, carrying capacity and synthetic fibers give the commercial fishing industry the ability to catch fish faster than they can reproduce. Thus, when a down cycle occurs we have overfishing and the fish cannot recover.
The letter indicated that an issue was resolved with a vote at an ASMFC meeting. ASMFC is a compact of 15 states and all significant issues are resolved with a vote. The members voting are the state representatives and are knowledgeable of the issues being voted on.
Damon Tatem is honest to a fault in reporting what he has been told. When a pier reports 10 sea trout early in the morning and a few blues in the afternoon, what it does not tell you is that 275 anglers fished all day for those few fish.
Let's hope that by working together in 1996, we can achieve lasting results that bring us closer to a sustainable fishery that will support both user groups.
C. Wayne Lee
Kill Devil Hills Another dirty deal?
The comments of Kill Devil Hills Mayor Duncan Wright contained in the Dec. 30 Coast are disturbing and appear to be very self-serving at best. Duncan stated, ``I think that finally people are seeing we are doing something on the west side of the by-pass that's not tourist oriented.''
Are you trying to claim glory for something that has been in the works before you were on the Board of Commissioners, Duncan? Is this similar to when you were promising such? These things have already been put in motion. I find it to be a bit insulting that you feel the people of Kill Devil Hills will buy into another behind-the-door dirty deal. I have investigated a bit into the bike trail. First of all, I know my father was very instrumental in moving the project forward. As the Town of Kill Devil Hills' representative on the Tourism Board, he worked very hard to make sure the town was a recipient of the various programs they offered.
Let's look at some facts, Duncan, the $117,000 project is being funded by the North Carolina Department of Transportation, thanks go to R.V. Owens III. The second phase of the project is funded in part by the tourism board. This will allow the town to make a very small contribution and the citizens will benefit greatly.
Let's embrace integrity and harmony and not ride on the accomplishments of past administrations, yet tackle the difficult problems that face our town. Let's place our best foot forward in an honest way and serve the town and its needs. The citizens of Kill Devil Hills deserve at least this, not empty promises and dirty deals.
Jimmy McNeill
Kill Devil Hills by CNB