Greenpeace

[Old Man of the Sea]

Leon Roskilly:

Leon Roskilly:

Yes, it is true. But now that there is a deterrent, UK fishermen are realising they must obey the rules. It is time DEFRA gave instructions to the Navy not to single out British boats, but to board and check all other EU fishing boats. Hopefully the rest of the EU fishermen would then come to the same realisation.

Hmmmm!

 

The current crackdown seems to have come from pressure by the EU when it singled out the UK (and Spain) to get its act together on enforcement.

 

See: http://europa.eu.int/comm/fisheries/news_c...inf03_50_en.htm

 

Which led to the 'Bradley' report.

 

See: http://www.defra.gov.uk/corporate/consult/...h-env/index.htm

 

 

Meanwhile, the EU is keeping a close eye on the enforcement regime of all the EU countries.

 

See:

 

http://europa.eu.int/comm/fisheries/scoreb...rd/index_en.htm

 

http://europa.eu.int/comm/fisheries/scoreb...03/index_en.htm

 

http://europa.eu.int/comm/fisheries/doc_et...m_03_344_en.pdf

 

 

And of course the EU now has a new Enforcement Agency tasked with ensuring that the rules are applied the same throughout the EU.

 

http://europa.eu.int/comm/fisheries/agency...cy/index_en.htm

 

http://europa.eu.int/comm/fisheries/news_c...inf04_15_en.htm

 

 

Tight Lines - leon

Food for thought, Leon! Maybe you are right. Although, judging by past experiences, the practical application of rules and regulations is not always the same as the intended application.

 

Hopefully things will be better - and more just - in the future. Again, only time will tell.

 

Over to you!

[Guest jay_con]

All quiet ?? hope I didnt frighten you off Binatone?

Perhaps he's trapped under a big pile of kelp at rhbay? Do you live in bay bt?

[John Mason]

Great thread! Haven't been for a look in here for ages and have spent all morning reading!

 

I cannot comment on the North Sea from experience as I live on the opposite side of the UK. Here in Cardigan Bay we have seen various stocks come and go over the last 20 years. Bass are commoner than they were (coincident with nursery protection areas) but are mostly undersized fish, with 3-5lb fish a lot harder to find from the shore these days. Thornback ray, the mainstay of the charter fleet in the 70s and 80s, were tangle-netted into oblivion in the 90s and are comparatively rare these days. Cod have never been a big feature of the bay as long as I have known it. The large packs of spurs were wiped out by longliners way back, as Davy mentioned.

 

The recreational fishing sector now largely focusses on tope and black bream with catch-and-release strongly encouraged. There is little doubt in my mind that there is far, far more economic potential in this than in wiping them out over a season as happened with the thornbacks. On a good Summer weekend, you'll have maybe 6 or more charter parties staying in the area, spending good money locally in shops, pubs, tackle dealers etc and keeping 6 skippers/crews in their jobs. And that's just Aberystwyth.

 

Now onto Greenpeace. I know people who've worked on their boats and caught fish on rod & line for fresh food. I don't believe the organisation has a problem with fishing - so long as it's done sustainably and with the lowest possible impact on other aspects of the marine ecosystem. They are not tree-huggers (never met one myself!) but they do see the bigger picture, which is what is needed. The sandeel fishery case was a good example of needing to do that - read John Brennan's article if you haven't already - and I agree with the earlier post about ensuring the ban (admittedly brought in about 5 years too late) continues well beyond the current 5 years. You start bashing huge dents into the middle of the food chain and you're looking at a disaster. Seabirds, cod, bass and whiting among others need sandeels, not Danish porkers. Never caught one of them on a Redgill anyway!

 

I am all for a complete cessation of winter pair trawling in the SW for spawning bass - not only because of the marine mammals that are destroyed in the process but also because, as has been pointed out elsewhere, the proverbial goose is being killed before its golden egg is laid! Here on the Cardigan Bay coast, dolphins and porpoises are hugely important for tourism - worth their weight in gold in fact! Seen the estimated amount of visitor revenue they bring to the area somewhere - can't remember the exact figure but it is BIG. Another case of needing to see the bigger picture.

 

Greenpeace, commercial and recreational sea-users (apart from dolphin-chasing jetskiers of course) ought to be working together to secure a better future for all. Our interests have more in common than not. Stock collapses help none of us. The tale of the striped bass fishery across the pond is evidence enough for that, and proof that such plans can work if properly thought through, implemented and policed. Any sea angler or responsible commercial fisherman should have little difficulty in seeing this. The irresponsible ones within BOTH camps shouldn't be involved with the sea, either recreationally or commercially.

 

Cheers - John

[wurzel]

Welcome aboard Old Man Of The Sea and binatone, I haven't been entertained so much in ages, It's good to see the mud fly back as quick as its been thrown.

[big_cod]

It keep things lively wurzel.

[Guest jay_con]

???? OMots ?? To me sounds rather sensible so far. He has made no attempt to hide anything. Early in this thread bianatone suggested we should all shut up because we know nothing about commercial fishing. He tried to stop us talking about black fish by suggesting Anglers sell all thier fish and that some go poaching using big treble hooks. We were told that black fish goes on but there is nothing we can do about it. told that we should keep quiet and let the fishermen worry about thier industry and just hope they keep us in mind.

 

Conversley OMOTS appears to put forth more sensible and reasoned points of view. His point about less boats was a strong one. His addmittance of Black fish and huge artic lorries filled with over the wall landings was such a surprise to hear from a commercial fishermen. This approach makes him more acceptable to me. Rather than just offering his own biased point of view and telling everyone else to shut up because thier own house is out of order, this man appears a lot more sensible. No doubt i'll be made to eat my words though.

[wurzel]

Nobody ever denied black fish, it was the reasons behined it that you all had difficulty in understanding.

[Guest jay_con]

Think you have it wrong again wurzel. We all understood the reasons for it, It was the agreeing that those reasons were ok and acceptable where I struggle and still do, probably always will.

If quota's are set to protect fish then you must abide by them. This "we no best" attitude, and blame everyone but ourselves is destroying the stocks and damaging good scientific based work designed to protect them. The measures put in place fall a long way short of what ICES propose each year, and as a group some commercial fishermen cant even abide by watered down measures.

[wurzel]

See! you just proved my point. It's ok to protect fish but who's going to protect the fishermen,If a quota is set below finacial viabillity fishermen have no choice.In most cases we do know best, and I can hear that bloody echo again, what stock is being destroyed.

[Guest jay_con]

Weve been here a thousand times Wurzel. If my job doesnt afford me with enough cash (believe me we have no luxeries in my house)should I go rob my neighbours shed and sell the contents on ebay to help me keep afloat?? or do I need to have a serious rethink? Is it ok to break the law???

 

If you believe overfishing hasnt substantially impacted on cod stocks then you are even more naive then I initially thought. If there had been no cod fishing in the north sea for the last 20 years what would the current situation be?? Wakey wakey wurzel.