The National Professional Anglers Association’s (NPAA) Executive Director, Patrick Neu, traveled to Washington D.C. last week to testify at a U.S. Senate hearing on harmful algal blooms held by the Senate’s Oceans, Atmosphere, Fisheries, and Coast Guard subcommittee of the Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee. Mr. Neu was invited to testify before the committee by Senator Tammy Baldwin, of Wisconsin, the ranking member of the committee. Neu, a life-long angler, outdoor industry veteran and the Executive Director of the NPAA for the past 9 years gave both written and oral testimony on his firsthand experience with algae blooms in his home state of Wisconsin and as a part time resident of Southwest Florida. The oral and written testimonies are available for review at the following links:Oral Testimony ; Written Testimony.
Neu commented that “The National Professional Anglers Association (NPAA) and our members are literally on the front line when it comes to harmful algal blooms. I’ve fished all my life and like many of NPAA’s members have seen firsthand the negative impacts harmful algal blooms can have on our waters, the resulting losses of fishing opportunities and the impacts they have on recreational fishing-dependent businesses. We commend Senator Baldwin and the committee for focusing on these issues, and the Senate for unanimously passing the Harmful Algal Bloom and Hypoxia Research and Control Amendments Act of 2017. We are hopeful that the House will bring their version of this bill up for a vote in the very near future so that we can continue attacking the causes of these devastating algal outbreaks on a bipartisan basis.”
The NPAA is working diligently on behalf of its members, partners, and the industry to address issues that can and will affect the future of sportfishing. “Addressing the algae bloom issue, proliferation of Aquatic Invasive Species(AIS), and other issues affecting anglers that have chosen sportfishing as a career path is what we do at the NPAA,” said Neu. He went on to say “We work daily to protect the sport we all love. Combine those efforts with the time and money our association spends to educate our members on professionalism and the support we give our members who volunteer their time to grow the sport by hosting Future Angler Events and I ask if you, are a guide/captain, tournament angler, angler educator, industry rep, fishing/marine manufacturer or an industry association and you’re not a NPAA member or partner yet, why not?”
To learn more about the NPAA, our members and our partners go to the NPAA website at www.npaa.net .
About the National Professional Anglers Association
The National Professional Anglers Association (NPAA) is a non-profit, member-based association dedicated to sportfishing. The NPAA’s membership is composed of professional guides, tournament anglers, angler educators and sportfishing/marine industry professionals and industry partners who are passionate about the sport.
The NPAA’s mission is: “To increase the professionalism of our members as we work to grow and protect sportfishing.”
The NPAA is proud to have a very substantial list of Partners that support its efforts as an association. A complete list of those partners can be found on the NPAA Partners Page at http://npaa.net/partners/
More NPAA partner, member and industry news can be viewed at www.npaa.net .