Bass Anglers’ Sportfishing Society

Fighting for Bass and Bass Anglers’ since 1973

Net Gains: Gross Injustice

  A year ago in a small Cornish harbour I watched a commercial fisherman sorting a catch of bass. Such was his bonanza that his gillnets appeared to be more flesh than monofilament. This windfall for the mostly part-time potters went on for weeks. The huge pre-spawning aggregations of bass that had shoaled up from […]

Latest ICES advice: 85% reduction in bass landings is now needed in 2016!

The long awaited advice for bass was issued today by ICES (the EU’s own scientist advising on fish stocks). They included recommendations for our area of the central and south North Sea, the Irish Sea, the English Channel, the Bristol Channel and the Celtic Sea. The ICES figures are the key data that informs us […]

New EU rule restricting commercial fishing for bass

  From 24 June 2015, two new EU rules restrict commercial fishing for bass: 1) monthly vessel catch limits (“VCL”); and 2) a ban on EU vessels fishing for bass in the waters around Ireland. The VCL are different for each métier, ranging from 1.0 tonnes a month to 3.0 tonnes a month  (see here). […]