I FISH NY:  Fishing Outreach and Education for Long Island and New York City

Authors: Melissa Cohen and Chart Guthrie

In 2000, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) implemented the I FISH NY program in Long Island and New York City using funds from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The program was created to ensure that anyone who has a desire to fish would have the resources and knowledge necessary to do so and to increase stewardship by building public awareness and understanding of aquatic resources in metropolitan areas of New York State. DEC subsequently partnered with New York Sea Grant to perform activities including community fishing clinics, school programs, and day-camp programs. Due to demographic and geographic differences, implementation of the program differs between the two regions with Long Island having a more established “fishing community” and New York City residents having much less contact with the water surrounding them. Consequently, instruction on Long Island has been more advanced and includes aquatic education and fishing on charter boats whereas instruction in New York City has consisted of aquatic education in classrooms with fishing field trips occurring at local water bodies where fishing occurs from land and piers.