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South Louisiana’s coastal
fishermen had been netting redfish for the markets and restaurants in New
Orleans for well over a century when some of the nation’s wealthiest sportsmen began to consider
this publicly owned resource as their own. As they pressured the state’s
government to take all of the redfish  away from the traditional fishermen and seafood consumers, the
sportsmen cynically portrayed the
rural netters as “greedy,” and themselves as “conservationists.”
Frustrated with the media’s coverage of
this challenging issue, commercial fisherman Robert Fritchey wrote WETLAND
RIDERS to help save his own industry. With his personal profiles of several
colorful old-timers, Mr. Fritchey introduces the reader to our family
fishermen. And, supported by data provided by unbiased fishery scientists
and economists, he affirms that the long-term welfare of the redfish and
other wetland-dependent finfish lies in continuing to share these publicly
owned resources with the public.
WETLAND RIDERS is an uncompromising book
that exposes the origin and early successes of a movement that threatens
America’s seafood industry. Of obvious interest to commercial fishermen,
WETLAND RIDERS is also a unique resource for readers with an interest in
the culture, environment and economy of our coasts, the seafood industry,
consumer advocacy, political and environmental journalism, and rural
conservation. WETLAND RIDERS is generously illustrated with photographs and
line drawings.
WETLAND RIDERS - 401
pages
ISBN 0-9636215-0-5 |
