Marine site’s conservation status could impact recreational anglers

The Kingmere, situated between Worthing and Littlehampton, is renowned for its black sea bream stock, its protected subtidal chalk and rock and mixed sediment.

It’s because of these unique features that it was chosen by the Government to be among the first tranche of sites in English and Welsh territorial and UK offshore waters to be granted Marine Conservation Zone status back in 2013.

The area is a popular recreational fishing spot, with charter boats taking bookings from anglers from all over the country and beyond who specifically want to fish for black bream.

While the anglers and charter skippers rightly support the conservation status they are concerned that fishing management rules currently being formulated could have devastating consequences for their businesses and the sport they love.

Sussex Inshore Fisheries and Conservation Authority (IFCA) has been tasked with consulting all stakeholders, which includes anglers, potters, divers, charter skippers and commercial fishermen, on fishing activity management in the Kingmere, before it introduces byelaws to regulate fishing in the conservation zone.

Despite a number of consultations between stakeholders and IFCA in the past 18 months, anglers and charter skippers feel there are still many unanswered questions and believe their livelihoods could be under threat if certain managerial options are taken.

Mark Vale, a Sussex angling charter skipper, said: “There are serious concerns over the restrictions that will be imposed on charter boat angling with the introduction of the Kingmere marine conservation zone.”

During last year’s bream breeding season, Mr Vale, whose vessel launches from Shoreham Port, said 70 per cent of his income came from fishing the Kingmere for black bream. In a 98-day period, he took an average party of six anglers to Kingmere 23 times.

He said: “The Kingmere is very unique. People literally come from all over the country to fish for black bream there. It’s known for it.

“The take of bream by charter boats and angling in general is miniscule in comparison to the take by commercial activity. Yet I believe the restrictions will be disproportionately felt by the angling community because we fish within the reef system.”

The main concerns surrounding fishing activity management include a reduction in the number of fish each angler is allowed to keep, a ban on dropping anchor while fishing in the conservation zone and a blanket ban on fishing in the zone during the breeding months.

Mr Vale said: “If they turned around and said ‘we’ll let you have a bag limit of two’ I wouldn’t get any customers.

“Also, whether they caught two fish or 20 fish, it would make no difference to the stock level. They’re prolific. You haven’t got enough anglers in the county to take enough fish to affect stock. Whereas one trawl will take out a whole shoal. Whether it’s three or five doesn’t make a difference to the shoal, but it makes a huge difference to my business.”

Members of the Angling Trust Sussex Marine Region have created a voluntary code of conduct to show IFCA and Natural England that they are serious about conserving the Kingmere.