Conservation and Ethics

The London International Club members keep in high regards the needs of the sea and the environment and voluntarily abide to high integrity standards of ethics and conservation.

There are a few important points that the reader should note about Spearfishing and the environment.

In contrast with many other fishing techniques like nets or lines, spearfishing is an extremely selective sport. The diver sees the fish before attempting to catch it and can therefore avoid taking small or immature fish. Furthermore, spearfishermen generally take only one fish per school as opposed to commercial fishermen who often take the whole school… Other fishing techniques also often result in tons of "by catch" thrown back in the ocean … dead. (see www.defra.gov.uk/fish/conserv.htm on the "by catch" problem). Spearfishermen do no such a thing and actually strongly condemn such wastes. Done responsibly breath-hold spearfishing could be one of the most environmental friendly and ecologically sound ways to bring fish to the table.

Spearfishermen dive without the help of any breathing apparatus and hunt the fish in their environment, which makes the sport very challenging and natural. Divers catch only a handful of fish for eating and by law are prohibited from selling any fish.

Spearfishermen generally have an in-depth knowledge of the sea, its creatures and their habitat, based on years of diving experience and observation. Divers are often the first to spot environmental problems and raise the alarm hopeful that the relevant authorities will intervene in time. Within the London International Club we try to make our resources available to support environmental projects. For example we support the project for the protection of sea turtles in the UK and have agreed to contact the Marine Environmental Monitoring Team should we find a turtle in difficulty. (For more information of the Project please see: www.strandings.com). Similarly we support the Institute of Marine Studies in Plymouth and report any unusual fish sighting in UK waters. (For more information on the programme please see: www.ims.plym.ac.uk)

Overall spearfishing catches account for a minuscule proportion of all fishing catches. For example, in the 2001/2 season the total fish catch over the 5 competitions of the UK Spearfishing Championship was less than 1 ton. This is the major spearfishing competitive event throughout the UK and it involves an average of 40 divers for approximately 6 hours per competition. All the catches were of adult fish and way above the minimum sizes required by UK law. In contrast, according to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs the total landings of fish by UK commercial vessels in 2001 amounted to 737,800 tonnes! This excludes all the by-catches…. (Source: www.defra.gov.uk)

Minimum Fish Sizes

The London International Club members have high integrity and environmental standards and don't take any under undersized fish. We voluntary adhere to strict environmental standards. Below is a selection of the minimum fish sizes that we respect. Note that the minimum sizes are generally well above the legal requirements in England and that in most cases the fish we catch is substantially above those measures.

Fish Name	Fish image	Minimum Size	Approximate Weight
Seabass		45 cm
Pollock		36 cm
Grey Mullet		36 cm
Cod		36 cm
Wrasse		36 cm
Mackerel		28 cm
Black Bream		28 cm	0.5 kg
Red Mullet		28 cm	0.3 kg
Pouting		28 cm
Gurnard		28 cm
Garfish		45 cm
Conger Eel			4 kg
Sole & other flat fish			0.5 kg
Brill			0.5 kg
Rays & Skates			1.5 kg
Lobster		8.5 cm carapace length 25 cm overall length Max 2 per day
Edible Crab		14 cm carapace width
Other species			0.5 kg

Protected Species	Fish image
Silver Eel
Salmon
Sea Trout

Please note that the UK minimum fish sizes and protected species are subject to change and vary from region to region. Readers are advised to check with the local sea fishery office. The London International Club makes no representation as to the completeness of the above information.

The following links might be helpful:

Web address	Name	Logo
www.sussex-sfc.gov.uk	Sussex Fisheries
www.neseafish.gov.uk	North Eastern Fisheries
www.esfjc.co.uk	Eastern Sea Fisheries Joint Committee
www.nwnwsfc.org	North Western and North Wales Sea Fisheries
www.swsfc.org.uk	South Wales Sea Fisheries
www.nsfc.co.uk	Northumberland Sea Fisheries
www.defra.gov.uk	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
www.environment-agency.gov.uk	Environmental Agency

Code of Conduct

In addition to the minimum fish sizes detailed above we encourage our members to abide to the following Code of Conduct, which differentiates between Beginner, Experienced and Advanced spearfishermen. The Code is entirely voluntary.

Note: EEC law bans the sale of speared fish. (So stock up your freezer!).

British Spearfishing Association ("BSA") Rules

The London International Club is part of the British Spearfishing Association ("BSA"), the main spearfishing body in England. The Club abides to the BSA rules, especially in relation to the UK spearfishing competitions. For more information please visit the BSA website: BSA Website.

Sussex Code

The Sussex Club agreed the following spearfishing code with the sea fisheries in Sussex. Key rules include:

» All minimum fish sizes as per BSA Rules

» Maximum 10 fish per species per diver per day (voluntary code)

» Maximum 2 lobsters per diver per day

» No Silver Eels

» No diving in the Bass Nursery Area off Chichester (All tidal waters inclosed by a line drawn 192° true from Eastoke Point to Chichester Bar Beacon then 078° true to Cakaham Tower).

Please respect this Code if you fish in the area.

Please note that the summarised regulations may be subject to change. For up to date and additional information please see the Sussex Sea Fisheries'website www.sussex-sfc.gov.uk

CMAS rules

Spearfishing international competitions are regulated by the Confederation Mondiale des Activites Subacquatiques ("CMAS"). To have more information on the CMAS rules please see the following link: www.cmas2000.org/comspo/docutheque/

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