Saving Seafood

Climate change conflicts are here – and ‘scallop wars’ are just the beginning

September 11, 2018 — As the planet warms, species are moving further north to climate zones which are closer in temperature to what they originally evolved in. The oceans have absorbed most of this temperature increase, and so many marine species, including commercially fished scallops, are under particular stress to migrate northwards to cooler waters.

In the face of this disruption, legal boundaries for fishing fleets could become increasingly irrelevant. As the fish stocks they once contained move out, conflict is likely to arise between countries exploiting neighbouring fishing grounds.

As a result, the ongoing “scallop war“, which has seen tense physical confrontations between French and British fishers over access to these prized molluscs, may be a taste of worse to come.

The habitat ranges and migration patterns of commercial species in the ocean have been carefully studied throughout history, so that fishing fleets can exploit them more efficiently. This understanding has informed the division of fishing grounds according to who has the right to harvest them.

French scallop fishers were incensed over their British counterparts’ alleged pillaging of scallop stocks, as smaller British boats aren’t bound by a French law that prohibits dredging in the Baie de Seine from October 1 through May 15, to allow scallop populations to recover.

While on the surface it might seem that these skirmishes are anchored to specific circumstances – potentially inflamed by existing tensions around Brexit – they highlight the enormous difficulties in clearly mapping and enforcing legal boundaries around natural habitats that are changing rapidly.

Read the full story at PHYS.org

UK-France scallop skirmish settled, subject to compensation for UK boats

September 10, 2018 — The UK and French governments have reached an agreement over scallop fishing in the eastern English Channel, with French conservation measures designed to protect the shellfish extending to UK vessels.

In a joint statement from both governments, supported by UK fisheries minister George Eustice, it was announced the previous conservation agreement involving the UK 15-meter-and-over fleet would be renewed.

In addition, there is agreement in principle for UK under-15m vessels to be included in the deal. This is subject to a “reasonable compensation package”, the details of which are set to be defined in Paris on Sept. 7.

In the meantime, there is a voluntary agreement for all UK vessels to respect the French closure period in the Baie de Seine, the statement said.

The long-running dispute in the channel particularly concerns the scallop-rich Baie, in which French fishers are prevented from harvesting due to domestic environmental laws.

Read the full story at Undercurrent News

Scallop row: French fishermen wary of UK deal

September 7, 2018 — A deal has been reached to bring an end to the skirmishes between French and British fishermen in the Channel, but boat captains on the Normandy coast have vowed to fight on if any British boats come near their fishing grounds before October.

The agreement is yet to be signed and among those with most at stake are the two captains of La Rose Des Vents and Le Sachal’eo, whose dramatic collision with a Scottish trawler last week was caught on video.

Anthony Quesnel, captain of La Rose Des Vents, returned to Ouistreham’s empty dock on Wednesday after a night at sea and almost a tonne of mackerel, sole and plaice. But, in keeping with French rules, there were no scallops until the end of the breeding season at the start of October.

Like many fishermen here, he is adamant that British boats should abide by those same French rules when it comes to fishing for scallops – even though the UK government has in the past imposed no similar restrictions on its vessels.

Read the full story at BBC News

French navy ‘ready to act’ against England over scallops

September 5, 2018 — The French navy is “ready to act” against the British over control of a scallop-rich seabed.

A seafood feud between the two countries erupted last week when French fishermen chased their Brit counterparts out of the Baie de Seine, according to the Telegraph.

The disgruntled French fishermen were fuming that the English can fish for scallops in the waters year-round, but they are barred from doing so during the summer months under a previously struck agreement.

The British accused the French of ramming their ships and hurling projectiles at them – and the French said they experienced a violent counter-attack.

“We can’t keep going on like this, we can’t keep having skirmishes like that,” French Agriculture Minister Stephane Travert said Tuesday.

“The French Navy is ready to step in if more clashes break out, as well as carrying out checks,” he added.

Read the full story at the New York Post

French, UK fishermen to seek scallops deal after sea skirmishes

September 4, 2018 — Fishing industry officials from France and Britain will try to strike a new deal on dredging for scallops next week following violent skirmishes in the Channel, authorities said on Friday.

On Tuesday, French vessels rammed British trawlers off the coast of Normandy, hurling projectiles and insults in a dispute which erupted after a previous agreement broke down.

French fishermen accuse the British of unfairly catching scallops in the Baie de Seine in the summer months when French boats are banned from doing so under rules imposed by the Paris government to conserve stocks of the shellfish.

French Agriculture Minister Stephane Travert told Europe 1 radio he had discussed the issue with a British minister on Thursday night and that the industry representatives would meet next week to work out an agreement.

“We both condemn the violent acts and we want to return to a spirit of responsibility,” Travert said.

Travert said he had asked British fisheries minister George Eustace to ensure UK vessels do not sail south of the Barfleur-Antifer line, the scene of this week’s clashes.

The industry representatives would meet in London on Wednesday and French government officials would also attend, said Dimitri Rogoff, who heads the Normandy fishing association.

Read the full story at Reuters

French and U.K. Fishing Boats Clash in ‘Scallop War’

August 30, 2018 — It’s been called the “scallop war” — a simmering rivalry that spilled out into the open again this week when French and British vessels clashed in the English Channel, French fishermen tossed what appeared to be smoke bombs at their rivals, and the British called on the Royal Navy for protection.

Video footage on French state television and on social media showed about 35 small French fishing boats menacing five larger British vessels early Tuesday morning in a stretch of international waters that separates Britain from the rest of Europe, just off the northwest coast of France.

At least one French boat slammed into the side of a Scottish vessel.

A French official said no one had been injured in the clash, but called the encounter “extremely dangerous.”

The French argue that British fishing vessels have an unfair advantage. The French government does not allow fishing for scallops to begin until October, in order to preserve the stock.

Read the full story at The New York Times

Northern Cod Fisheries Improvement Project to Aid in Understanding of Stock Components

April 24, 2018 — SEAFOOD NEWS — A Northern Cod Fisheries Improvement Project (FIP) will help researchers understand Northern Cod stock components and their movement along the slope of the continental shelf, as well as their inshore offshore migration patterns.

The project is being led by the Groundfish Allocation Council (GEAC) and the Association of Seafood Producers (ASP) in an effort to “enable more effective stock assessment modeling and management measures to control fishing mortality.” Acoustic receivers will be dropped in waters off Eastern Canada and acoustic tags will be placed on Northern cod.

“This is crucial work, and an important piece in addressing longstanding scientific questions around the Northern cod resource,” said FIP co-chairs Derek Butler, Executive Director of ASP, and Bruce Chapman, President of GEAC.

Government scientists, as well as academia from Memorial University, Dalhousie University, the Ocean Tracking Network, and the Ocean Frontier Institute, andindustry reps from Icewater Seafoods and Ocean Choice International of Canada, and Davigel Inc. of France, sat in on a scientific workshop for the research program. The group came up with a final deployment plan for the acoustic tags and receivers.

Industry stakeholders reported on the progress at their third annual FIP Working Group meeting in Brussels.

This story was originally published by Seafood News, it is republished here with permission.

 

ISSF Skipper Workshops Reached Record-High Number of Tuna Fishers in 2017

March 15, 2018 — WASHINGTON — The following was released by the International Seafood Sustainability Foundation:

The International Seafood Sustainability Foundation (ISSF) Skippers’ Workshop programmarked its most successful year on record in 2017, reaching 794 participants, with tuna purse-seine skippers (457) and crew (238) comprising the majority (88 percent) of attendees. Other workshop participants included vessel owners and officials.

Since 2009, ISSF has been conducting workshops worldwide that unite fishers from tropical tuna fleets with scientists and other stakeholders to discuss methods for reducing shark and other bycatch, especially during Fish Aggregating Device (FAD) fishing. ISSF partners with Azti-Tecnalia, a Spanish technological research center for marine and food innovation, to conduct its skippers workshops.

Last year, ISSF added new workshop locations, including Zhoushan, China and Ambon, Makassar, and Manado, Indonesia. Eighteen skippers workshops were conducted across 10 different countries, covering fleets in the Western and Central Pacific Ocean, Atlantic Ocean, Indian Ocean, and Eastern Pacific Ocean. Since their inception, ISSF workshops have attracted more than 3,000 participants — including more than 1,700 skippers, enough to put nearly two ISSF-trained fishers on each large purse seine vessel operating today.

Notable activities in and findings from 2017 workshops include:

  • Rising acceptance of biodegradable FADs to reduce marine debris, with initiatives like the one in the Indian Ocean, Project BIOFAD, with participation from Spanish and French fleets
  • Continued success in advancing the use of lower-entanglement-risk FADs and non-entangling FADs by fleets in three out of the four major tuna fishing regions
  • Wide acceptance of best bycatch release methods, with some fleets applying them daily
  • Fisher support for technology to remotely identify the presence of small bigeye and yellowfin tuna at FADs
  • Discussion of options to reduce FAD impacts, including limiting FAD numbers, FAD closures, or prohibiting supply vessels

Now in its second year, ISSF’s “Train-the-Trainer” program in Indonesia reached small-vessel tuna purse-seine captains in seven workshops. These local trainers will enable the program to reach more skippers in remote locations across the archipelago.

“Our skippers workshops continue to be the best method for ensuring that our research findings on FAD management and bycatch reduction result in positive shifts on the water,” said ISSF President Susan Jackson. “Not only are we able to share best practices as we gain more scientific knowledge, but we are also able to gain valuable insight directly from the fishers who spend their working hours fishing for tuna. It’s education that goes both ways.”

All 2017 successes are outlined in the recently published ISSF Technical Report ISSF Skippers’ Workshops Round 7. The report includes details on each 2017 workshop, photos, and graphs showing fisher participation and acceptance of best practices. It also features a “Novel ideas and improvements for mitigation activities” section.

Skippers’ workshop attendance fulfills the requirement for ISSF conservation measure 3.4.

About the International Seafood Sustainability Foundation

The International Seafood Sustainability Foundation (ISSF) is a global coalition of scientists, the tuna industry and World Wildlife Fund (WWF) — the world’s leading conservation organization — promoting science-based initiatives for the long-term conservation and sustainable use of tuna stocks, reducing bycatch and promoting ecosystem health. To learn more, visit iss-foundation.org, and follow ISSF on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram (@issf.official).

 

NFI seeks to reach administration on seafood trade in 2018

January 2, 2018 — Pressing the importance of all trade on the Donald Trump administration, including imported seafood, will be one of the top priorities of the National Fisheries Institute (NFI) in 2018.

The US seafood industry’s biggest trade association, representing close to 300 companies, is still smarting from several of the moves made by the White House and its Cabinet in their first year, including its formal withdrawal from a trade deal with Pacific countries, a lack of progress on a trade deal with Europe and implementation of the Seafood Import Monitoring Program (Simp).

But NFI president John Connelly said trade will remain a top focal point for the group in the New Year.

“We just need to spend more time on the Hill and in the administration to help them appreciate that not all trade is negative for the US,” Connelly told Undercurrent News in an December interview at his office in McLean, Virginia. “Seafood is not like steel or autos or something else. We cannot now produce enough seafood in the US, whether it be from wild capture or aquaculture, to feed all Americans.”

The US exports 40% to 60% of the seafood it produces, depending on the value of the dollar and some other factors, and imports about 85% of the seafood it consumes. Seafood is responsible for 1,270,141 jobs in the U.S. and imports account for 525,291 of those, according to Department of Commerce data noted by the association.

“Gladys, down in Brownsville, Texas, is cutting imported tilapia right now, and that job is extraordinarily important to her family. Why is that job any less important than a job involving domestic codfish?” Connelly said.

High points and low points in 2017

But in looking back at 2017, Connelly can point to at least one major trade-related victory: The removal of the prospective border adjustment tax from the legislative tax overhaul passed by Congress and signed by the president before leaving on its winter break. The provision, which was supported by several Republican leaders, would have forced some seafood dealers to raise their prices 30% to 40%, said Connelly, quoting a Wall Street Journal article.

Read the full story at Undercurrent News

 

Brexit Leaves French Fishermen On The Hook

September 12, 2017 — France’s busiest port, Boulougne-sur-Mer, sits just across the English Channel from Britain, in the Calais region.

Seagulls glide above scores of brightly painted boats docking to unload the catch of the day — mainly sole but also cod, roussette, crab and scallops.

It’s all sold at a bustling seaside market where Marie-Laure Fontaine sells seafood from a fishing boat called Providence.

“Sole and cod and turbot, we get these all from British waters,” Fontaine says. “And this is a worry.”

Up to 80 percent of fish caught by fishermen here comes from British waters, which are about a two-hour boat ride away.

French fishermen have been nervous since Britain voted to leave the European Union last year. That’s because when the divorce is final, the U.K. will also leave what’s called the Common Fisheries Policy.

“After that, the U.K. will be an independent coastal state, like Norway or the Faroe Islands or Iceland,” says Barrie Deas, chief executive of the U.K.’s National Federation Fishermen’s Organisations. “The U.K. will determine its own fishing quotas and access arrangements. So I think it’s realistic for the French to be worried.”

Read and listen to the full story at NPR