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Catch #038; Release Fishing Banned in Switzerland?

By Tom Chandler 5/8/2008

Has Switzerland just banned catch & release fishing, insisting that anglers humanely dispatch everything they catch?

From the Chattanoogan:

Catch and Release fishing will be banned in Switzerland from next year, it was revealed this week.

And anglers in the country will have to demonstrate their expertise by taking a course on humane methods of catching fish, under new legislation outlined by the Bundesrat - the Swiss Federal Parliament.

The new legislation states that fish caught should be killed immediately following their capture, with a sharp blow to the head from a blunt instrument. Under the new regulations, the use of livebait and barbed hooks is also prohibited except in certain situations.

The laws come into effect in 2009 but while the Swiss government does not mention Catch and Release specifically, it does say that "it is not permitted to go fishing with the 'intention' to release the fish."

Wow. What about tiny, juvenile fish? What about accidental bycatch of other species?

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A little more digging takes us to the European Fishing Tackle Trade Association's site, which covers this story in depth, concluding that:


EFTTA acting president, Pierangelo Zanetta, said: "EFTTA does not believe that forcing anglers to kill their catches is either good for nature or for recreational sport fishing - which makes a significant financial contribution to the EU economy.

#8220;Making the killing of fish obligatory will simply reduce fish population and, at the same time, run the risk of having a negative impact on sport fishing.

"Anglers and the sport of angling invest time and money to improve water quality and create larger and healthier fish populations. We believe is it far better for the fish if the fisherman decides, according to the situation, whether to keep and eat the fish or to release it."

How about it, Undergrounders. Is that fish you just caught better off dead? And has Switzerland just written the epitaph of its sustainable sport fisheries?

AuthorPicture

Tom Chandler

As the author of the decade leading fly fishing blog Trout Underground, Tom believes that fishing is not about measuring the experience but instead of about having fun. As a staunch environmentalist, he brings to the Yobi Community thought leadership on environmental and access issues facing us today.

15 comments
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The philosophy is this: catching and eating trout is OK, but catching and releasing is torture. Of course, the idea isn't to encourage the killing of trout; it's to eliminate fishing for them by eliminating the only fishery practice that's sustainable for any location receiving more than limited pressure. In truth, organizations like PETA would like to have it both ways; they want to eliminate Camp;R ... more fishing, but turn around and condemn those who eat fish.
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Without properly educating myself on what sort of philosophy can see this practice as logical much less humane I find my first reaction to be, what are earth are these politicians thinking. I am an avid fly fisher and believe that it is a very special sport where being kind to nature and all that dwell is first and foremost in the mind. I had the fortune of living in Switzerland for three months and ... more have had nothing but praise for the country. Having fished in the Interlaken streams twice during my stay it would break my heart to have to kill these fish. Here is BC we have fish by the bucket...not so there in your small country. It would be nice if politicians (all) would find something a little more worth while to waste their time on. You have a great country and quite frankly this policy really surprises me, well at least from the outside looking in.
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Morten: I can see your point, but mine is that you're being forced to do something illegal that's actually bad for fisheries and fish.
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Hi there, im a flyfisher from switzerland and i got to say, the thing dont get eaten as hot as they get cooked. Its true that Camp;R is forbidden but if you not catch the species you have targed you allowed to release it. So if i catch a trout and get caugth releasing it i just tell i fish for graylings and it all legal..its as easy as this. So you see it didnt change much...a flyfisher still releases ... more and a butcher stays a butcher. greez from Zurich Morten
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What a joke.. i'm so glad i live in the USA.
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Wow, absolutely amazing is the only way to describe the ignorance demonstrated in this legislation. I agree with every other poster that this is nothing but utter lunacy.
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So what do I do with all of these dead fish? I don't eat fish, too many small bones.
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I guess they want their streams as clean as their streets! I tell you, that Swiss Legislation runs like a fine watch... No half-hearted blows to the head and one better be sure the instrument used to dispatch said trout qualifies as blunt under Swiss law.
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I am not sure of the logic behind this. Are they saying it is more humane to kill the fish instead of releasing them???? That is the craziest thing I have read in a while. Bruno
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TC, This is similar to the Animal Welfare Laws of Germany which have been in place for years. One of the clauses of the German Law states: "Article 17 Anyone committing the following offences shall be liable to up to three years' imprisonment or a fine: 1. killing of a vertebrate without good reason or 2. causing a vertebrate: a) considerable pain or suffering out of cruelty or b) persistent or repeated ... more severe pain or suffering." Plus, as you know, "To obtain a German fishing license: You must complete the IMCOM Fishing Course that is two weeks long with 30 hours of instruction on fish habitats and biology, fishing regulations and general knowledge before you can be tested and become licensed. Once you pass the test, you may purchase a fishing license from the local city hall, called the Rathaus, for about 22.50 Euro per year depending on where you purchase the license." - http://www.ansbach.army.mil/sites/directorates/lake.asp Thus all German anglers are trained to quickly kill the catch (individual German "states" have differing laws on the killing of undersize fish). As some have said for years, Catch and Release fishing (with that as intent) plays into the hand of PETA, et al.
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Does taking the course on humane methods of dispatching fish result in a "license to kill" :)
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Crazy. What about politicians accidentally hooked while casting (I cast poorly), do we hit them on the head with "a blunt instrument?"
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Absurd.
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[...] (h/t to The Trout Underground) [...]
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Gee, and just when I thought Louisiana had the market cornered on idiotic, meddling politicians. I'll bet that most of them who voted for this are neither fishermen, nor did they actually read the bill. I know that, in a lot of cases in our legislature, the individual members often have no idea what they are voting on.
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