The Yamaha Marine Group has launched a fishing access advocacy program that aims to unite the freshwater and saltwater worlds for a stronger national voice in Washington, D.C.
The initiative, called “Bass Anglers for Saltwater Conservation,” will use a website — bassforsalt.com — to mobilize anglers to become grassroots advocates for fisheries by asking lawmakers to support legislation that protects the rights of recreational fishing, according to Martin Peters, Yamaha’s manager for government relations.
“It’s really important for us to get this right,” he said. “Fishing advocacy can’t be just a coastal issue. It has to be a national grass-roots effort in any area where fishing access is threatened.”
Anglers can visit the site and endorse one of several pre-written advocacy letters that will be sent electronically to the advocating angler’s lawmaker. A big part of the effort is achieving a Magnuson-Stevens reauthorization that is favorable to the marine industry and recreational anglers.
Peters said there are more than 22 million freshwater anglers who can “lend a powerful voice to their 11 million saltwater brethren.”
