READER'S WRITE

In a recent letter posted in the Reader Write section Joe Schenck from Lambertville wrote in with concerns about the new policy for cleaning fish at the marina.

Quote “As I read the regulations, however, I became less joyful. The regulations stipulate that cleaning is to be performed at notated “stations” and that remains are to be disposed of in plastic bags that will be provided. They also suggest that remains can be returned to the water – to the harbor.”

What Joe failed to note is that immediately following that the sign states that if fish are to be disposed of in the water than it must be done properly i.e. stomachs slit open and insides removed. This is to prevent the fish from floating to the surface.

Joe also wrote “As a regular visitor, I find it repulsive to witness fish remains floating in the harbor and lament that the brown color and the particulates suspended in the water are a direct result of the disposal of fishing carcasses in the harbor.”

It is quite a stretch to say that the cause of the particulates in the water and the water color are a direct result of the disposal of fishing carcasses. The water throughout the entire bay is brown in color and it is caused by silt and microscopic marine and plant life, not the decay of fishing carcasses.

John P Coughlin
Atlantic Highlands, NJ