Many moons ago, in my early fishing days, my favorite after school ritual was drifting the flats with my buddy Captain Turtle (not really a captain) aboard his 13' Whaler. We’d throw soft plastics on 1/4 jigs for trout like it was our job, and it was not uncommon for us to have 30-50 fish days. Occasionally, one of us got lucky and stuck a fat ling, which made for a pretty serious battle on our ultra-light trout setup.

Our old “Mr. reliable” bait was a Bass Assassin curly tail in what we liked to call "titty pink". Back then, to us, those baits were like crack to an addict. When a certain sporting goods store would run out (I’m pretty sure we were 99% responsible) we’d get pretty distraught and had to revert to the same bait in the nearest color - red tail white body, or a chartreuse Maverick diving plug. Realistically, we’d go through dozens of soft plastic baits every trip – compliments of my good buddy the puffer fish! In fact, those little bastards probably cost us a cool grand over the years.

By now, you’re probably wondering why I’m rambling on about trout fishing 10 years ago with titty pink soft plastic baits. Well, thanks to some prudent scientific breakthroughs along with corporate policy changes reflecting environmental stewardship, I have begun to rethink the powers of non-biodegradable soft plastic baits in general.

Even though the excerpt below may only be focused on freshwater brook trout, and this is mostly a saltwater community, the question remains quite practical. What, if any, impact does using soft plastic lures (SPL’s) have on fishing mortality rates? According to The North American Journal of Fisheries Management (2009; 29: 352-360) it appears the impact is pretty significant.

“Thirty-eight brook trout Salvelinus fontinalis were fed a commercial trout diet mixed with a free-choice assortment of soft plastic lures (SPLs) over a 90-day period. Fish growth was recorded and compared with that of a control group. The brook trout readily ate the SPLs from the water's surface as well as from the tank bottom. At the conclusion of the study, SPLs were recovered from the stomachs of 63% of the test fish. Several fish stomachs contained multiple lures. Twelve percent of the fish voluntarily ingested more than 10% of their body mass in SPLs. These fish lost a significant amount of weight during the study, had a significant decrease in body condition factor, and began displaying anorexic behaviors. For these reasons, anglers should be discouraged from discarding used SPLs in trout waters.”

Not much after learning this piece of information, I had the opportunity to go fly fishing for stripers in Maine with my good buddy and senior PR guy for L.L. Bean, Mac McKeever. On this trip, Mac and i were talking about the issue of SPL's and he broke some news to me. Starting August 1, 2009, L.L. Bean would be discontinuing the sales on non-biodegradable soft plastic lures. At first i was quite concerned that titty pink would no longer be in my fishing arsenal, but Mac assured me the biodegradable fishing bait industry would come up with something to satisfy my fix. My hats off to you Mac and L.L. Bean! I personally want to take this chance to say thanks for an unforgettable day of fishing and for taking such a bold stance on this issue. Hopefully, many fishing retailers and distributors will follow in your wake.

Equally, if not more, important as the retailers and distributors, is the fishing community at large.  Without your assistance, by adopting eco-friendly fishing practices, this will be a tumultuous uphill battle. But just like anything worth fighting for, if you believe you can make a difference, you will. So get out there and share the knowledge. Ask your local fishing shops to do what L.L. Bean has done. Write your favorite bait company and make a formal request for them to focus all efforts at being eco-friendly. You may have to sacrifice fishing with your secret weapon, as i have, but in the end it will be worth it.

“By August 1, 2009, L.L. Bean Retail Stores will no longer be offering traditional soft plastic lures and will be proud to only offer biodegradable alternatives which cost roughly the same, are just as effective and durable and breakdown naturally in water within 60-90 days and within 30 days in a fish's stomach. The new assortment of biodegradable alternatives also closely mirror the broad assortment previously represented by the traditional soft plastics L.L. Bean was offering.” – Mac McKeever

By: Captain Jon Brett