Sunfish. What have they done for those of us in QLD??

[finga]

Thanks for the heads up about their charter FNQ dude.
I wonder how much rig-moral it'll take to get a copy of that sucker?

Damo. You definitely don't beat about the bush do you. I love it. Don't ever change

[Macks forever]

I don't like sunfish, no lasting good comes from them, i know they had a make-over a while ago after their former colors where shown brightly so....reinvent with simple government appealing spin...trouble is, has anyone Angler ever read their charter??

Seriously their charter speaks volumes, it's not about the sport it's about the money and position, of coarse they will mouth different just like during RAP etc but their charter spells it out plain and simple.... pandering to government ideology is their aim....the anglers come way last...an organization simply cannot look after the grass roots and keep that charter.

Sunfish is simply lucky the government sponsored environmental zealot attacks on anglers has calmed down after them and sunfishes resounding wins of a few years past in decreasing angler amenity/ access and choice, otherwise sunfish would have by now and again been forced as per charter to side with government against anglers to keep their favored position.

Time will come again.

I thought I better find out about this Charter. But I couldn't find it. Could FNQCairns post a copy?

I did a search of the various websites. A little frustrating.... Sunfish Queensland website www.sunfishqld.com.au is inaccessible for some reason unknown. There were a lot of Google search links to the site on various subjects but alas, no access. Also there was a site called www.sunfishqueensland.org which was under construction but seemed to be for Sunfish North Qld.

The Sunfish South Moreton website http://www.sunfishsouthmoreton.com.au seemed quite simple and informative. They seem to have a focus mainly on Junior angler education and cleaning up the Pin. Nothing wrong with that as far as I am concerned. Nothing about a Charter or specific actions in relation to fisheries management.

The Sunfish Fraser Coast website http://www.sunfish.com.au was the most informative and quite professional. It also gave information on Sunfish Qld. Lot of stuff going on there apparently but I have only copied the 2 bits that I though might be relevant for this thread in relation to Charter etc.

About Sunfish Fraser Coast

Just like you, we are frustrated by the government’s treatment of recreational fishing as an insignificant part of the local economy and social structure. Decisions are not made to benefit recreational fishing, but often hurt it.
Fish stocks have declined significantly & the government refuses to acknowledge it. Worse still they often blame recreational fishers for it.

A fisherman [recreational or commercial] with a hook and line cannot possibly compete with 600 metres of commercial fishing net, yet legislation gives the nets priority.

Sunfish Fraser Coast was formed in 1996 to support local recreational fishing and ensure that our popular pastime is protected for the future. Local anglers need to be heard & have a say in changes and management decisions that affect their lifestyle. Sunfish Fraser Coast is affiliated with Sunfish Queensland, which deals with the issues that affect the whole state. Sunfish Fraser Coast mainly acts on local issues that are important in our region.

Recreational fishing plays a vital role in the social and economic environment of the Fraser Coast region. Recent research indicates that there are in excess of 75,000 fishers locally who contribute in excess of $100 million to the regional economy. Another $100 million can be added to this via capital ownership associated with boats, fishing tackle, camping equipment and vehicles.
Sunfish Fraser Coast is engaged in many important decision making processes including consultation with the general public and various community groups to ascertain the needs and aspirations of our local recreational fishers. These can then be submitted to the government and local councils in a manner in which they will be heard & acted on.

Sunfish Fraser Coast is involved with numerous Government advisory bodies where the future direction and management of recreational fishing is discussed & decided on.

Specific issues achieved in recent years include –

· The banning of trawling for winter whiting
· The new boat ramp at Gatakers Bay Pt Vernon
· The banning of ring netting of spotted mackerel
· Rod holders on the Urangan pier
· Banning of commercial netting for tailor on Fraser Island
· The erection of fish cleaning stations at Burrum Heads the Urangan Pier[2] and River Heads

Apart from the positive changes that we can all see, one of the most important functions Sunfish serves, and which is never seen, is the prevention of removal of more of our rights, which is an undercurrent in most new legislation. Sunfish gets in at the discussion phase to ensure that negative effects on anglers never see the light of day.

Future issues include further restrictions in relation to bag and size limits, no fishing areas, green zones & marine parks, establishment of Net Free areas and the creation of Recreational Only Fishing Areas [ROFAs], artificial reefs, recreational fishing licences and the improvement of boating infrastructure and facilities.
Other activities Sunfish Fraser Coast conducts regularly include:-

· Teaching children in the basics of recreational fishing with the popular “Take a Kid Fishing day”
· Angler Education classes & family fishing days
· Assisting anglers with disabilities by supplying motorised fishing reels and special coaching clinics
· A new initiative teaching adults, in particularly retirees, how to fish around Hervey Bay

Don’t complain while doing nothing. Make a difference!
JOIN SUNFISH


About Sunfish QLD

SUNFISH QLD was formed in 1993 out of the Queensland Sport and Recreational Fishing Council (QSRFC) which had been operational for some 20 years prior to that.

SUNFISH Qld is at arms length from Government and is A POLITICAL

Sunfish Qld is the peak recreational fishing group in Queensland. It represents our membership of 45,000 individual members and consults widely with the 840 000 recreational anglers in Queensland. Sunfish Qld endeavours to represent their interests through our structure which includes all the major Statewide fishing organisations such as:

• Queensland Game Fishing Association (QGFA),
• Australian National Sportfishing Association (ANSA),
• Australian Underwater Federation Queensland (AUFQ),
• Queensland Amateur Fishing Clubs Association (QAFCA),
• Freshwater Fishing and Stocking Association of Queensland (FFSAQ), and,
• Blue Fins Fishing Club (over 5,000 members). Additionally SUNFISH QLD has Regional Branches from Cairns to the Gold Coast. Most importantly, we have a democratically elected Executive.

Sunfish Queensland Recreational Fishing Policy

Sunfish has the following beliefs and values:

Recreational fishing is an industry and activity of sporting, economic and social value. Sustainable Environmental values are imperative to the recreational fishing experience. The sustainability of this State’s fishing resources is the responsibility of every individual. SUNFISH represents the interests of the Recreational Fishing Industry with vigour, equity & accountability

The Sunfish Mission is to "Ensure quality recreational fishing". In pursuit of that mission Sunfish has three goals.

1.Be an effective representative lobby group for recreational fishing.
2. To have a community well informed on fishing & the issues through education & public awareness.
3.Fisheries sustainability through community participation in planning, research & management Political parties must have a recreational fishing policy within a wider fishing industry policy so that the State’s recreational fishers can assess outcomes and their benefits to recreational fishers and use that in their decision on how to exercise their vote.

In this context Sunfish has prepared a list of outcomes it sees as desirable for inclusion in recreational fishing policy.

SUNFISH Qld also recognises the need to co-exist with a sustainable commercial saltwater fishery provided it is well managed & the cultural rights of indigenous fishers using traditional fishing methods.
Visit Sunifsh QLD Website.


I was unable to find websites for the other branches of Sunfish but I did find a lot of interesting reading on the net about issues in regional Qld that involved Sunfish Branches, especially in the Mackay region. I did not search for the state associations that make up the Sunfish Qld membership, such as QAFCA, ANSA, Bluefin Fishing club, etc to see what they are doing.

[Macks forever]

Originally Posted by Macks forever
Yep. The Fisheries Act was implemented. Quite familiar with it actually. But what is the point you were trying to make with the links, Pinhead? What did I miss?

If you ear bash your local pollies over fisheries issues then you ARE doing something. And genuinely good on you. But why did you say you have done nothing and will do nothing?

Also please show everyone where I said - "you state they dance to the Govt's puppet strings." I said no such thing. Your words, not mine.

I do not need to put up a complete CV of my activities to have the right to point out your incorrect statements and misleading information.

At least we have agreed who is really to blame - the fisheries managers and the politicians. However, I believe the situation for rec anglers would have been A LOT WORSE than it is now if there had not been a number of people and organizations [including but not exclusively Sunfish] working hard and badgering the fisheries managers and politicians over the last couple of decades.



and there is a piece of incorrect and misleading waffle if ever there was any written.

Thanks Damo..you summed up the situation perfectly.

I can only ask Pinhead to again please clarify what he is talking about specifically? What is it that is incorrect and misleading waffle?

Firstly, I asked Pinhead to explain why he put in the links he did - one to a press release from Ed Casey in 1994 and the other to the Fisheries Act. I was genuinely asking for clarification as I had no idea about the point he was trying to make. I still don't.

Secondly, I paid him a compliment for actually ear bashing the pollies. As I said, genuinely good on him. I simply could not figure out why he previously said he does nothing and would do nothing. I still do not understand why he said that.

Thirdly I asked Pinhead to show everyone his source for a quote he attributed to me which was simply not true. Personally I find it annoying when people misquote me, but I find it offensive when they actually make up their own words, and then tell the world that I said them.

Also I noted where I believed we agreed on something - who was really to blame - the fisheries managers and politicians..... I thought we did agree on that.... sorry if I misconstrued what he said previously.

And lastly I stated what I believe. I still believe it.

[TheRealAndy]

Macks Forever, would you care to enlighten us as to who you are?

[Macks forever]

Hi Andy.

Sorry, for a number of reasons, not at this time.

Suffice to say that I am someone who has been involved in trying to get a better deal for rec fishers in Qld for nearly 20 years. I have probably spent more of my own time and my own money pursuing that outcome than 99.9% of rec anglers in Qld. You can take my word for that or choose to disregard it as you see fit.

In that time I have argued a lot with Sunfish, and I do not always see eye to eye with them. But I have also seen some of the outcomes that have been affected by them and others. Not many recently I must admit... But as I said in a previous post, I do believe that rec fishers in Qld would be a lot worse off it there was nobody arguing on their behalf. More of our rights would have been stripped away. Again take my word for it or disregard it as you see fit.

Some of the outcomes I do not agree with either, but I have read a lot of Sunfish's submissions on various issues that I have been involved with, and have at times been in the same room arguing the same points. Apart from them not being militant enough, IMHO, I have agreed 'in general' with 'most' of what they have been pushing. I have also tried to change their view on some issues. Sometimes with success. My intent is not to get into a pedantic argument about any particular issue here.

I have also seen the amount of time and effort that goes into lobbying on behalf of rec fishers [not referring specifically to Sunfish], the lack of gratitude from the average angler, the criticism without construction [armchair critics], as well as the lack of understanding, or desire to understand, the intricacies of a fishery and trying to change govt policy and Qld fisheries bias.

Most of all I have seen, and felt myself on numerous occasions, the total devastation and demoralization [you can feel this in Dayoo's posts for example] that happens when the politicians and bureaucrats [DERM, the old EPA, DEEDI, Qld Fisheries, the old QFMA, politicians of both sides etc etc] pull out of commitments, change the rules and do back room deals after all the logical submissions and discussions have been considered.

Cheers
Macks

[PinHead]

MF..I ain't going over this any more..be offended or otherwise I don't really care. It is obvious you have alterior motives, you come on here and waffle on all things concerning fish management and nothing else fishing related.

In case you do not understand..SUNFISH SUCKS.

[chris69]

As far as im concerned all sunfish has done is bring in a lot of restrictions by complaining about the profesional fisherman,ban the beam trawlers were did they think the bait prawns were coming from ,thats right some bait company will import prawns with white spot disease , all ready happened, lets ban the netters , wheres the mullet gut for the bream fisherman and the flesh that comes from the fish for bait and food and the frames for the crabers and where did sunfish think the fresh squid was comeing from thats right the trawlers that they banned and i suppose the pilchards just jump into blocks for the tailor fisherman as well and not from someone that earns a liveing and pays for the privelige to do so, ive offten woundered how they would feel if there lively hoods were treatend by a group that does not like what there doing and put the shoe on the other foot.

At the boat ramp one day i saw a local sunfish rep bribie and asked him what he caught he said nothing should ban the netters he said, well i caught fish 7 of them 4bream and 3 flathead , if he wants to sit on anchor and not get a bite or a fish then start blaming someone else because he cant catch a fish well what more can i say , this was my only experence with someone from sunfish , i no that just one member does not represent the rest of sunfish but i think there all tared with the same brush , but ive known there pollicies for years as a pro and as a recreational fisher, they might have done some good in some respects like putting in cleaning stations that stink and are unsanertary to clean any fish on at my local ramp and it was good that some rod holders were placed on a jetty, but have been a lot of trouble for the rest of it by not thinking throught things to the very end of what there doing and just setting there own agender to get there own way and say that they represent the recreational fisherman well they dont repesent me and never have and never will , well thats what sunfish has done for me i dont like them either.

[finga]

So what is Sunfish doing about this??
http://ausfish.com.au/vforum/showthr...46#post1315946

They should be more outraged then Phill. They're supposed to be representing 840,000 of us and be outraged for us all.

[Fitzy]

Interesting comments from Barry Pollock (Sunfish Chair) on 16 September

11. AUSFISH.

Some Sunfish members may have noted the malicious comments and other dubious posts about Sunfish and its Chairman, and other people on the AUSFISH forum. The Sunfish Management Committee is very reluctant that Sunfish should respond on a social site that is more about entertainment and ego-tripping than responsible fisheries management. All policies of Sunfish, including our submissions on fisheries management reviews are done by an inclusive process whereby all members and regional branches can have an input. Sunfish wishes to continue to be a responsible and reputable representative of recreational fishing in Queensland.

Well Barry, since you think Ausfish is all about ego-tripping & entertainment, you have just potentially alienated yourself from several thousand more recreational anglers in Qld.
I personally take offence to your comments; QED there are many many Ausfish members who have dedicated alot of effort to "responsible fisheries management" and lobbying on behalf of recreational fishing not only in Qld, but Australia wide.
And, I know the owners of Ausfish themselves have long been avid supporters of many initiatives to help the lot of recreational fishing. If you haven't annoyed them to the point the word sunfish gets put onto a "naught word list", try talking to them to seek support for your causes instead of rubbishing their website via your membership email network.
Get with the times Barry, the internet & social networking sites such as Ausfish are here to stay & growing daily, shit can it all you like man, but you will get lost in the prop wash if you don't engage via this type of media.

Garry Fitzgerald

[charleville]

"The Sunfish Management Committee is very reluctant that Sunfish should respond on a social site that is more about entertainment and ego-tripping than responsible fisheries management."



Gee - that is pulling the shutters down, isn't it?


It is hard to have much confidence in an outfit that wants to bury its head in the sand like that.




.

[Shawn 66]

There is the answer to your question Scott (Finga). Sunfish have managed to accomplish something. Unfortunately , I fear the thing they have accomplished is to p!ss a fair portion of the forum off.
Shawn

[finga]

Thanks Fitzy. I think.
Well Mike. You wanted to know how to communicate with the average fisho.
I'm afraid Barry has figured it out.
Bush telegraph combined with the internet and information can be distributed quick as a flash.

So much for representing recreational anglers when you won't communicate with them but degrade them. Especially when it seems that the vast majority of anglers are not members of clubs or associations etc.

I would like to know what the malicious posts were.
Constructive criticisms is just one way in which people (or organisations) should grow into better beings.....but only if they are willing to accept the criticism and change.

Arrogance (for dummies like us recreational anglers): a sense of one's own importance that shows itself in a proud and insulting way

[Basstones]

"The Sunfish Management Committee is very reluctant that Sunfish should respond on a social site that is more about entertainment and ego-tripping than responsible fisheries management."



Gee - that is pulling the shutters down, isn't it?


It is hard to have much confidence in an outfit that wants to bury its head in the sand like that.




.

It's an absolute joke.

I've been fishing for years and only recently started getting in to the online side. Not once before I found Ausfish had I even heard of Sunfish, and even since discovering their existence i've been underwhelmed. I want to do my bit, and i'm not content with how all fisheries decisions are being made, but statements like that one above don't make me want to contribute my time to Sunfish.

If they can't at least recognise one of the largest online fishing communities, that has a statewide (and well beyond) audience and some very well informed and respected members without a comment like above then it doesn't exactly seem like we are on the same side does it?

[rayken1938]

To put it bluntly .
If you dont like what they are doing join up and bring about change
otherwise
SHUT UP.
Cheers
Ray

[finga]

To put it bluntly .
If you dont like what they are doing join up and bring about change
otherwise
SHUT UP.
Cheers
Ray

Does that mean we have to also join the Labor Party to talk about problems the Labor Party are having at a Federal and State level at the moment? They're meant to represent us.
Troubles with the Liberals?? Join them too.
Troubles with the Greens?? Join them while the cheque book is out I suppose.

If an organisation is meant to represent the general populous then they should be listening to the general populous.
Sunfish has charged itself as the peak body to represent recreational anglers. We did not charge them with that duty...did we??
There's a fair few individuals here that sit fair bang in the middle of the group of people known as the recreational anglers of QLD.
Listen to what people from here and Nuggets site and other sites with a strong QLD influence and the general idea of how people are feeling may be appraised. Have a yarn to the people at tackle shops and see how they feel??
We should not be changing the minds of the hierarchy of Sunfish. The hierarchy of Sunfish should be listening to us and changing their attitudes to those that would best represent us.

There's a small quote from Mack's fella's reply. Dr. Barry Pollock wrote it.
The new Snapper rules were announced by Acting Premier Lucas on behalf of the Government (Cabinet). It was Cabinet not Minister Wallace who took the final decision on the current rules. Judy, David and I were invited at short notice by the Government to their announcement about Snapper on Sunday 26 June. That was not the time or place to enter into detailed discussions with the Acting Premier or Minister Wallace on the new Snapper rules, or to seek clarifications on details.
I have a few small questions if I may.
When the bloody hell is the appropriate time to question that decision then??
That was exactly the correct time and place to be asking questions and seeking clarifications.
Sunfish should have been asking questions and jumping up and down. Make the Minister and acting Premier answer questions and to clarify things. Make them uncomfortable in their meeting of short notice.
They now know they can steam roll Sunfish and they'll try it again and again from now on I reckon.
Or did the Government learn that one ages ago??

If someone tells me they're going to give me chilli sauce on my hamburger when I want BBQ (and they know I want BBQ) I'm sure as hell going to question their decision when they tell me I'm getting chilli. Just too late once the hamburger is in my hands heading towards my gob for them to change things isn't it??

Besides that....the meeting was on a Sunday. How many Government meetings are held on a Sunday. Should have just told them make it Monday because you've gone to church.

Besides, besides that...it was a media release wasn't it. What a great opportunity to get media attention. Abuse the minister and Deputy Dog about making stupid, unclear decisions. Get it on the 6 o'clock Sunday night news. Nothing interesting ever happens on a Sunday.