[Capt Sal]

Originally Posted by tjd24

FYI-I started this Thread.
While I saw watching these boats, I called the USCG Offices in Bayonne, Staten Island and The Battery. No one was able to give me info about legality etc. Another call to the NJ State Police Marine Unit was no help either. They suggested I contact NOAA Enforcement. I was disappointed because I figured...."they can check for short fluke but not a few boats wiping out tons of bunker in a few hours".

When I got home I called the NJDEP Fish & Game Enforcement Unit in Nacote Creek, Port Republic, NJ regarding bunker purse seining boats. I was told it is legal for purse seiners to operate from 0.6 to 3.0 miles from shore in NJ. The woman told me that the purse seiners were required to report to the Nacote Creek Office the locations where they plan to fish each day. She informed me that they had an Enforcement Officer who was expected to be in that area to observe this activity.

I told her it made me sick to watch these guys take all the bait that just arrived in the Bay. She said she understood but it's legal.

By law if there are stripers in the net they can not lift them from the small boat pulling the net to the big boat.If they lift them and drop them like the bunker you have a bunch of dead stripers and big breeder weakfish. I have watched them do it and it made me sick.If they come in to the bay in April and May and take all the bunker from the NJ side the NY side still has bunker.The bass are on the NY side following the bait.It can ruin the striper run!It is ridiculous that the same body of water has different laws.Tell me the NJ politicians give a rats ass about bunker!As far as how close they can go to shore was changed years ago and you can thank the HI-Mar club for that!!!