Lead lures not worth the price
Lead-based fishing lures are heavy. They’re durable, and they’re cheap.
But the lures, which are popular among New Hampshire fishermen, also have shown to be lethal to loons around the state, and that’s why they must be dropped.
State lawmakers are weighing a proposal to further restrict use of lead-based fishing lures, which often are lost during fishing and can prove fatal if they are retrieved by loons.
Fifteen years ago, New Hampshire became the first in the nation to ban the use of some lead lures. In 1998, lawmakers passed a law prohibiting lead sinkers weighing up to 1 ounce and lead jigs, a type of lure, up to 1 inch in length, in state lakes and ponds. But, in the years since, loons have continued to die after ingesting the lures. Between 1988 and 2011, nearly 125 adult loons died due to the lead, according to the Loon Preservation Committee.
Now, the current proposal, which passed the Senate unanimously last month, would ban any lead jig 1 ounce or less.
Some fishermen and shop owners, among others, have decried the proposal. Joe Catalano, owner of Granite State Rod & Reel in Nashua, told The Telegraph last week the higher cost of tin- and tungsten-based jigs, among other alternative lures, could drive him out of business. Further, the tighter restrictions could drive away fishermen, costing the state valuable licensing revenue, according to fishing enthusiasts.
But that hasn’t been the experience in other states.
Massachusetts enacted a lead lure ban in 2012 and still sold 10,000 more fishing licenses than the year prior.
State officials don’t attribute the increase to the ban – it resulted more from good weather and a longer fishing season, Marion Larson, the department’s information and education chief, said last week. But, certainly, the new restriction didn’t prove to be much of a deterrent for Massachusetts fishermen. Nor would it in New Hampshire.
In the short-term, the restriction might lead to higher costs for some fishermen. But, taking the long view, losing more loons would come at a greater cost to New Hampshire’s natural heritage and its tourist economy. That’s not a price we’re willing to pay.