I realise there are places you can and places you can\'t dig. If you can\'t dig, that should be then end of it, and on the spot fines should be enforced.BUT... amongst the place that you can\'t dig, how do you know you can\'t dig unless there\'s some obvious signs etc?? Only once have I fallen foul of this. Someone \'local\' to the area approached me and told me it was outlawed, so I stopped. But there was nowt anywhere to tell me as such.
I did think it was someone just trying to scare me off digginf on their patch, but did subsequently discover it was a no-no. If I\'d known that I\'d not have bothered. I suppose any funds raised by fines should pay for some signs at least.
What about those that dig for commercial pofit ie to sell on?? as individuals your less likely to completely rape one patch of beach, than if you are flogging em. Perhaps commercial diggers ought to licenced.
Bit hipocritical I know as we would all love to be able to buy the best bait from our local tackle shop, but I have also seen vast trenches cut across the beach, left unfilled, and decimating a particaular worm bed