Undersized crabs not allowed as bait A Tenby fisherman had fines of £500 and costs of £200 imposed upon him after Magistrates sitting in Haverfordwest on 21 December heard how Officers from the South Wales Sea Fisheries Committee had discovered undersized Edible Brown Crab on board a boat in Tenby harbour; further searches of premises in Tenby itself also revealed undersized catches. Officers searched the boat in Tenby on 21 July 09 and found a catch of crab 60% of which was undersized. The next day in Lower Park Rd, a further 56 kilos were discovered amongst frozen crab stored for whelk bait. Prices for brown crab have dwindled over recent years and many local fishermen now concentrate on potting for whelks, supplying lucrative Far Eastern markets. But the Court agreed with the Committee who brought the prosecution, that the use of undersized specimens as bait in the whelk fishery was unsustainable and unacceptable. Lewis Creese of 7 Knowling Mead, Tenby pleaded guilty at the first opportunity and told the court that bait had been scarce for his whelk operation in the summer and that the two hauls in which he had retained undersized for the purpose were to be the only ones of the year. The crabs seized by Fishery Officers were ordered forfeit for destruction and an additional £15 victim surcharge was added to the bill. |
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