I was reading  this month's issue of North American Fisherman when I came across this ad. It is a product from Eagle Claw called Bioline. It is fishing line that is 100% biodegradable! I have never heard of biodegradable fishing line before and I was wondering if any of my fellow members out there have used this product? I am a big fan of Eagle Claw products and I will be giving this line a try. The great thing is is that is says it will completely biodegrade in 5 years! That protects the fish and other wildlife if you happen to get snagged and lose line. It also states that typical mono filament and fluorocarbon lines take 600 years to biodegrade! Thoughts?

Come on people! My topic got buried after one day!?

Not absolutely certain, but I think there is also another biodegradable line on the market recently.
Great idea, I'd like to know more about it's strength and dependability though.

Posted By bass or bass? on 08 May 2011 09:19 PM
Not absolutely certain, but I think there is also another biodegradable line on the market recently.
Great idea, I'd like to know more about it's strength and dependability though.

Agreed. It sounds like it's only good for one or two seasons though. Since they state it bio degrades after 5 years im not sure I would trust the strength and durability for more than a couple years. I hope it's cheap!

I first saw Bioline advertised on the Johnny Johnson fishing show, at that time they were independent so they must have been picked up by Eagle Claw. Haven't tried the line but the premis is good, as in some of this garbage which acts as traps for wildlife might not be dangerous for as long. As for longevity in normal use, well, I don't change my line often enough most of the time, lots of people don't change line until enough has been broken off so that reel function is impaired, I try not to go that far. Can't swear that I am completely succesful though.

Posted By AZAllen on 09 May 2011 01:16 AM
I first saw Bioline advertised on the Johnny Johnson fishing show, at that time they were independent so they must have been picked up by Eagle Claw. Haven't tried the line but the premis is good, as in some of this garbage which acts as traps for wildlife might not be dangerous for as long. As for longevity in normal use, well, I don't change my line often enough most of the time, lots of people don't change line until enough has been broken off so that reel function is impaired, I try not to go that far. Can't swear that I am completely succesful though.

Especially when anglers flagrantly discard their line on the shoreline and don't care about the environmental repercussions as well as not even showing a minuet degree of respect for their fellow fishermen. One of my favorite fishing spots I go to last year someone tied fishing line between two sign posts that people walk underneath. If I hadn't seen it I would have tripped and could have been injured. There are some sick people out there. Line that bio-degrades sounds like a very good idea. It's about time! It is 2011 after all!

I'd still like to see more in the field reports concerning this line. I respool all my spinning and baitcast reels that have mono on them every year. When I do it myself I take the old line to my tackle shop to be recycled. Other times I have them do all my reels on their high speed equipment and they take the old line for recycling.

Posted By bass or bass? on 09 May 2011 11:24 PM
I'd still like to see more in the field reports concerning this line. I respool all my spinning and baitcast reels that have mono on them every year. When I do it myself I take the old line to my tackle shop to be recycled. Other times I have them do all my reels on their high speed equipment and they take the old line for recycling.

That's cool. Where would I take my line to be recycled? A recycling plant or something? I hate just throwing it in the garbage. I usually stuff it into a small box or empty carton or something then throw it away so at least the line can't get tangled around something.

Old line can be taken to almost any tackle shop that sells Berkley products. Berkley collects the line and turns it into fish habitat. As far as biodegrading line, it's a great idea but a bird caught in the stuff won't live the 5 years it takes to degrade! Discarded line is a real problem but the solution is angler education not a crutch product of dubious value. Tom

How is it "of dubious value" if it does what it claims? It may kill a duck that swims into it a week after is is discarded into the water but a duck swimming by 5 years after it has been discarded will be safe because the line will no longer be there where as normal fishing line would still have remained in the environment. See where im going with this logic?

I'm kind of agreeing with Tom on this one, I know that 5 compared to 600 is a big difference, but thats still line that can do damage for 5 years. Angler awareness and education is still the way to go and the only totally effective strategy. (I still think its a cool concept, though)

It doesn't matter if you educate every angler in the world. There are still going to be people who throw their line in the water or wherever they want.

CQ, I see where you were going, but maybe in the long run, something like this would reduce the amount of broken line in the water, these bits which also become snags. And you are right, there are many who say" What difference does one (x) make?", of course. a few weeks later it is" Everyone else is doing it so what is the problem?" Why, because while one isn't much, one times a thousand is a lot.

Honestly, the people who just leave lines laying in the water aren't going to care enough to buy a different line that degrades faster. I mean if they didn't care before why whould they now? It sounds like a good idea but I dont see it really making much of an impact

It may be more of a gimmick, or it may be for the "green," environmentally conscience kind of fisherman. I would just like to know how it performs against typical fishing line.

I'm really curious too, I tell ya what when I see a spool I'll let you know what I find if you do the same, deal?

Posted By syork on 13 May 2011 11:27 PM
I'm really curious too, I tell ya what when I see a spool I'll let you know what I find if you do the same, deal?

Deal!

I doubt that any so-called angler that would leave used line lying on shore would spend any extra money to buy a premium line. It also would be interesting to know how many anglers posting here actually take the time to remove the discarded line they may find (along with any other litter) and dispose of it properly. It is my guess that not many do.

Posted By Pegsguy on 14 May 2011 11:38 AM
I doubt that any so-called angler that would leave used line lying on shore would spend any extra money to buy a premium line. It also would be interesting to know how many anglers posting here actually take the time to remove the discarded line they may find (along with any other litter) and dispose of it properly. It is my guess that not many do.

Not really fair to accuse us of not picking up discarded line. I do all the time.

Your guys are really cynical!! If almost everyone didn't take care of old line, our lake and river banks would be buried in that stuff. And it hasn't even been 600 years yet.

Posted By wmiket on 14 May 2011 12:05 PM
Your guys are really cynical!! If almost everyone didn't take care of old line, our lake and river banks would be buried in that stuff. And it hasn't even been 600 years yet.

I have been to a few spots that WERE pretty much buried in line (as well as lots of other garbage). And it's not necessarily angler's who purposely litter that im talking about but those who lose it accidentally like in a tree or by getting snagged on the bottom or some other obstruction.

I really don't see much of that down here. Yeah, I occasionally catch somebody's old broken off line and get rid of it, but compared to the number of people fishing it's not very often. Anyway, I would be in favor of biodegradable line for just those situations you describe as well as the few idiots who refuse to clean up after themselves.

I'd be all for biodegradable line, if it wouldn't degrade in my tackle box.

Posted By fisherfanatic on 15 May 2011 10:02 AM
I'd be all for biodegradable line, if it wouldn't degrade in my tackle box.

And therein lies the problem. It most likely will.

Hey Capt: Remember that only a small portion of fishermen in the US belong to this club and an even smaller percentage participates here! My point was that many anglers do not clean up after themselves let alone others. I'm not accusing anyone specific, if the shoe fits.....

If I'm not mistaken the strength is good for a whole year. At least that's what I read. I usually pick up any trash I see, including line.