I haven't read too many posts in here but I do have an opinion about this. I have seen so many people practicing catch and release and it seems that many people are not educated. I see so many people just drag fish up on the bank, no net, dry hands, never pinch barbs, throw (literally toss the fish) the fish back in to the water. If I am doing catch and release, the fish barely leaves the water. I try to remove the hook while the fish is in the water with plies, I always pinch barbs. I catch enough fish that I don't worry about the 1 or 2 I might miss because I am fishing barbless.
Banning catch and release would stop me from fishing gorgeous locations in Alberta in the mountains were you can't keep anything most of the time. So now nobody would get a chance to fish these locations? I fly fish, ice fish and kayak fish in open water. I practice catch and release a lot. I honestly don't think there is an issue as long as every precaution can be taken. There will be some issues with killing some fish once in a while but this is better than retaining fish on a regular basis.
Tight lines, set hooks, use the proper hooks, pinch barbs, use a net, don't drag the fish up the bank and let them flop around like mad. If everyone would follow simple steps to help the fish get back to their environment quickly and safely, we wouldn't be having this conversation. So, yet again a few bad apples will ruin it for the rest of us responsible fishermen.
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