Teesside anglers are being reminded to obey the law - and to help the Envrionment Agency uphold it
Teesside anglers are being reminded to obey the law - and to help the Envrionment Agency uphold it.
Over Easter in Teesside, Northumberland, and Durham, Environment Agency enforcement officers caught34 people fishing illegally.
Spot checks were carried out on all of the north east’s major rivers and most large stillwaters over four days, ensuring that anglers were properly licensed and following seasonal rules.
Some 1,064 anglers were checked: A total of 27 were fishing without a licence, and seven close season bye-law offences were detected.
The weekend’s operation follows similar enforcement action that saw 11 anglers caught fishing illegally in the first three weeks of the close season, which began on March 16.
Kevin Summerson, fisheries enforcement team leader at the Environment Agency, said: “Over the Easter weekend we were targeting anglers who persist in using illegal baits in rivers during the close season.
“The close season in our rivers is important to allow migratory fish time to breed and spawn, and certain baits that are more attractive to coarse fish are banned at this time to reduce the opportunity of game anglers inadvertently catching freshwater fish.
“We also checked anglers at stillwaters and reservoirs to ensure they were fishing with a valid licence.
“This is important because the revenue from licence fees goes back into improving fisheries, be that water quality, habitat or compliance.”
Licences can be bought online or at post offices.
Anyone who suspects illegal fishing to be taking place should report the matter to the Environment Agency’s incident hotline, on 0800 807060.
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