Auckland’s Outboard Boating Club (OBC) has taken a responsible and important step to sustainability by changing the rules of its fishing competitions from weight-based to length based, encouraging participants to return big fish to the sea.

The new rules were introduced at the recent Family Fishing Competition – the club’s largest – where over 260 participants were encouraged to play their part in protecting the long-term health of the fish stocks in the Hauraki Gulf.

A survey of skippers revealed that 70% of fish caught in the competition were released back to the sea, a figure the club hopes to build on in future competitions as it continues to educate members on the value of sustainable fishing.

The OBC strives to ensure members remain at the forefront of recreational fishing good practice, regularly supplying information and providing demonstrations. In support of this ethos, the Club’s Executive Committee voted to run all the club’s fishing competitions on a measure-only basis, giving anglers the choice to either keep or release their catch while still being eligible for prizes.

Grant Blair, a director of NZ Fishing Media and founder of the annual DB Export NZ Fishing Competition, a national online contest that is similarly fished on a measure basis, applauds the move.

“Using length measurement as the criteria for assessment provides the foundation for anglers to make the best decisions for our precious resources,” Grant says. “Fishing contests have traditionally focussed on killing and weighing the biggest fish and the prognosis for a dead fish isn’t exactly rosy.

“Instead, photographing the fish on a length measure empowers contestants to keep the best eating fish while releasing those large fish that are vital to the health of the fish stocks. It means OBC members can still be rewarded for a significant catch but also have the option to release it.”

The OBC’s adoption of the measure only concept makes it the first club in New Zealand to do so over all its events. They hope other clubs will follow their lead, now that the they’ve proven the success of the change.