Kohala Coast DI sued for reporting poor collecting practice
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DiveMaven
Contributor
Very sick when the fish collectors have the rights over someone trying to protect the coral. Wish they would ban fish collecting. If you can't breed the fish in captivity, then you don't need them in an aquarium IMO.
That is and should be a crime for them to do that. Some of our Dive boats over here in the Red Sea will do that. 
Some people just dont understand and it seems they dont care. 
Some people just dont understand and it seems they dont care. 
rgbmatt
Contributor
Hmm - fishermen (including aquarium collectors) have often reported coral damage and other resource violations. Often, we run into exactly the same problems as the Kohala Divers lady did. It's in everybody's best interest (including fishermen) to keep the reef healthy, both by acting responsibly and helping to get those who don't out of the water. However, this rarely makes the newspaper.
Meanwhile, dive & snorkel tours have also been accused (and occasionally found guilty) of coral damage. I doubt there's any group of ocean users that's completely innocent here.
Clearly the guy's anchor was in the wrong place. Without knowing the entire story, who can say whether the harassment charge is valid or not. By the sounds of things it probably isn't. It's likely that the fisherman will end up getting fined.
It would be nice if people could keep things in perspective and not make this another "aquariums vs dive tours" issue, since that's really not what it's about.
Meanwhile, dive & snorkel tours have also been accused (and occasionally found guilty) of coral damage. I doubt there's any group of ocean users that's completely innocent here.
Clearly the guy's anchor was in the wrong place. Without knowing the entire story, who can say whether the harassment charge is valid or not. By the sounds of things it probably isn't. It's likely that the fisherman will end up getting fined.
It would be nice if people could keep things in perspective and not make this another "aquariums vs dive tours" issue, since that's really not what it's about.
It seems to me that the title of this thread is untrue; the dive instructor has been charged with harassment, not sued.
fisheater
Contributor
Kafka lives!!!
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Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
I've had the privilege of diving with Brooke, and I can't imagine anyone more committed to preserving and protecting Kohala marine life and habitats. Of course she would record such careless and preventable reef damage. It's sad that apparently in the course of taking pictures of the damage she is charged with affecting the behavior of fish to be taken, thus the harassment. But then why, in addition, was she ordered to take down the pictures? This I really don't get, maybe some legal pros here can provide the rationale for this.
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