Charters angle to stay afloat

Rhode Island charter-boat captains have had a difficult time making ends meet for the last few years. Most agree their problems stem from too many governmental regulations and a still-sluggish economy.
Charter boats take on clients for a day of fishing or sightseeing and are seen as recreational – as opposed to commercial – for the sake of regulations.
Attitudes today are reflected in the Rhode Island Charter and Party Boat Survey of January 2011, conducted by Capt. Rick Bellavance, president of the Rhode Island Charter and Party Boat Association. Of the 214 recipients, 98 captains completed and returned the survey, revealing the following facts: Half of the charter and party captains believe their business will be worse off five years from now, and blame the difficulties facing their industry on regulations, the economy and increased operating costs. Half of captains say their revenue would increase if the fleet had its own allocation of fish, separate from private anglers and commercial fishermen. All captains believed they needed to be able to reduce their cost of operations and increase their client base in order to improve their revenue.
While most charters have experienced declines in business, they say the fishing remains good.
Capt. Norm Bardell owns and operates Busy Line Point Judith Fishing Charters, taking small groups for a day in the sun and fishing. Charters are available for fluke, black sea bass, bluefish and striped bass, the four primary fisheries. He even provides all the supplies. “This year has been slow, a slight improvement over last year but still very slow,” Bardell said. “On a lucky week I’ll make three runs. Most of [the charter boats] are sitting around the docks looking at one another, calling each other on the phone to make sure they are working.” In years past, he said, five runs per week were the norm, and sometimes on the weekend they would double-shift. “Now, if the weather’s nice you might get a last-minute call at 5 p.m. for a trip the next day. It’s not good for business when you can’t rely on anything.”
A 2007 report, “Rhode Island Recreational Saltwater Fishing Industry Trends and Economic Impact,” conducted by the Rhode Island Saltwater Anglers Foundation, revealed that saltwater recreational fishing at that time generated a total economic impact of $160 million, and that more than $24 million in wages and 1,000 jobs were tied directly to saltwater recreational fishing
Bardell believes that some of the restrictions are prohibitive to running a good business. He points to a few years ago, when the black sea bass fishery was shut down by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. He claims they had false data. “With it went a piece of the tourism trade,” he said. Another harmful move came by moving the minimum-allowable fluke size to be 18.5 inches while the commercial size is 14 inches.
On the 35-foot-long Drifter II, Capt. Dick Chatowsky has been fishing in Rhode Island for over 47 years and says this year hasn’t been too bad. “We’re busy, not like it was years ago, but our schedule is pretty full,” he said.
Capt. Fred Miller of Miller Time has had a little more success than most. He thinks of his helm as his office and he prefers it that way. “The charter-boat business is a luxury. When people have a few extra dollars to go around they’ll go fishing, but this is a tough economy.” •

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