Two South Otago men have been fined nearly $1000 each for fishing without licences on the lower Clutha River.
The anglers from Kaitangata, 40km south of Dunedin, pleaded guilty to the charges yesterday in Balclutha District Court.
Otago Fish & Game Council (F&G ) operation manager Ian Hadland welcomed the penalties.
The requirement for a fishing licence was well known and understood, and legitimate anglers had an expectation that F&G would promptly and firmly deal with anyone caught without one, he said.
"It seems that the courts are increasingly supportive of that principle too and recognise that licence fees are important in maintaining the sports fishery and habitat on behalf of all New Zealanders," Mr Hadland said.
Judge Stephen O'Driscoll said that penalties had to be kept high enough to make the choice to fish without a licence an "uneconomic prospect".
"The judge certainly drove that point home and when you consider that a $20 investment in a day licence could have saved these chaps from a conviction and a $1000 fine, the economics of the situation couldn't be more apparent," Mr Hadland said.
