Eloquent figures
Over 3.000 sport fishing companies in Italy, 180.000 members, an estimated € 2,8 / 3 billion per year and another work induced equal to 15.000 units. These are the numbers that, once analyzed, prompted Paolo Bongioanni to present a bill capable of promoting Piemonte two niche tourism sectors, but with ample room for improvement, such as fish tourism and tourism linked to wildlife hunting activities. In fact, in our region, there is currently no organic proposal on this matter. Yet, compared to other regions, Piedmont certainly has nothing to envy in terms of large lakes (located mainly in the provinces of Verbano Cusio Ossola or Novara such as Lake Maggiore or Lake Orta) and large rivers (Po, Tanaro, Dora Baltea).
How to enhance the supply chains
Waters in which it is possible to find different fish species of great interest to fishermen, but above all that huge and rich range of waterways that furrow our valleys where the trout is queen, in places of universally recognized beauty, in addition to ponds - artificial cava. Hence the idea of Bongioanni: a law to enhance the two supply chains. With regard to hunting tourism, on the other hand, a legal definition is still missing: the bill presented by the parent company of the Brothers of Italy aims to fill this regulatory gap: "We want to give a definition that includes its peculiarities, including gastronomic and cultural activities and the activities of hunting farms ”he explains. The will is to insert the region in a competitive tourist circuit with those of other European realities in which there are already very active accommodation facilities, in tourist incoming and territorial marketing. Alongside this, the request to counter any illegal poaching activity.
Number of active licenses
That the interest in the sector is high, as evidenced by the number of active licenses: in Italy there are 700.000, with our country in third place in Europe, behind only Spain and France. The estimated direct economic value is € 930 million, including the production of weapons, ammunition and the supply system and distributors. The Bongioanni bill is made up of 11 articles. The first, in addition to describing the purposes of the law and the definition of hunting tourism, provides for the fight against poaching. The second deals with promoting territorial enhancement actions related to fish tourism and hunting tourism, including fishing for particularly attractive species in quarry lakes, such as the Black Bass. Article 3, on the other hand, promotes the establishment of territorial supply chain agreements between the stakeholders of fish tourism and hunting tourism. Space then, in the fourth point of the PDL, for the improvement of the refreshment points in the areas used for fishing or hunting activities and for the support of the tourist reserves which become one of the fulcrums of the entire project.
Excellencies on which to emphasize
Article 5, on the other hand, promotes the concept of hospitality widespread in fish tourism. Point 7, on the other hand, is dedicated to the optimization of administrative bureaucratic practices, as well as article 8 proposes a modification of the regional law 5/2018 in order to simplify the possibility of being able to host wildlife hunting practitioners from Italian regions other than Piedmont. Article 9 establishes, at no cost to the regional budget, a technical committee on hunting and fishing tourism in order to have a technical body that can coordinate the various activities of these practices. If the last article is the one containing the notification relating to state aid, the tenth provides for financial coverage: the forecast is an allocation of 235.000 euros per year to be included in the budget chapter relating to tourism, divided into 150.000 euros of current expenditure and 85.000 capital account. “We have excellences to enhance: rivers, lakes, our territory. Piedmont can and must aspire to become a reference point for ictitourism and hunting tourism: not only the territories touched by this operation will benefit from it, but also the related industries. " concludes Bongioanni.