Horizons: fishermen respond to young people

The National Fisheries Committee (CNPM) launches on Wednesday, February 27th the Skylines Campaign, an atypical site so that young people, even those far from the coast, discover fishing. And some people say, "Why not me? "

Original and artistic, this program breaks down into three series of short documentaries:

Port to starboard: 

About fifteen young people from 10 to 17 years old, and some parents, evoke what the fishing inspires them and question the fishermen. For many, the sea is watersports. And fishing, a job not very cool, difficult and dangerous, but noble. 

No, say the fishermen, they are not at all "deplorable living conditions". They talk about anticipation, team spirit, passion, a beautiful living environment, another world, comfort, security, good wages, nature, free time ..." There are never two days the same.... There are beautiful things to see at sea... "Difficult? "Yes, but what job is not? " say the fishermen.

In the beginning: 

Anna, Lyonnaise, 12 years old, discovers fishing during a tide, on the inshore gillnetter Kendalc'h II at Plouguerneau. "Hat!  She exclaims, admiringly, after seeing the other side of the picture. In three sequences - before, during and after - the directors focus on his impressions and those of his family.

Masters on board: 

Six testimonials from young people in training or who have integrated fishing: sailor, mechanic, fisherman boss. They deliver their courses and their daily life with a great enthusiasm, enjoying the atmosphere on board, the big family side, the work dynamic, adventure. One can only be impressed by the responsibilities that some take, very young, like Marie, 23, in Cap Breton, who has just bought her own boat. Invigorating and able to arouse a true vocation.

Resources:

The site finally includes information and tools open access for young people seeking guidance or those accompanying them: training, flyer, poster, videos.  This program carried out by Catalpa agency at the initiative of the CNPM is supported by the Directorate of Maritime Fisheries, the Directorate of Maritime Affairs and France fishing sector.

Written by Solène LE ROUX - translated by Google from the original story in Le Marin.

Fishermen urged to be Brexit ready by registering with the IMO

Advice on preparing for the introduction of International Maritime Organization (IMO) numbers as part of contingency planning.

Under European Commission (EC) contingency proposals to enable it to grant our fishing vessels access to European Union (EU) waters in certain circumstances after Brexit, UK boats will be required to be registered with the International Maritime Organization (IMO).

While future access to fish in EU and other coastal State waters in the event of a no deal scenario remains a matter for negotiation, UK fishermen who want to prepare for all EU exit scenarios should apply for an IMO number now.

IMO registration is free and all UK fishing vessels will have to submit their IMO number to the Single Issuing Authority being established by the Marine Management Organisation (MMO) - on behalf of the UK Fisheries Administrations - to manage licensing for commercial fishing in non-UKwaters.

Download the IMO registration application form. Fishing vessel owners should complete the form and send it to ship.imo@ihs.com.

When fishermen have received their IMO number they should email it to UKSIA@marinemanagement.org.uk along with their Port Letter and Number (PLN) and Registry of Shipping and Seamen (RSS) number.

Fishermen whose vessels already have IMO numbers should send the details to the MMO, via UKSIA@marinemanagement.org.uk, so accurate records can be maintained.

All presentations from the #DiscardLess2019 science-policy conference January are now online! Check them at

WEDNESDAY 30th JANUARY

Session I: Landing Obligation: where are we now, what has changed, and what are the main barriers? (13:00 - 15:10)

Session lead: Mike Fitzpatrick (Ireland) and Kåre Nolde Nielsen (Norway)

12:30 - Registration
13:00 - Opening and welcome: Anders Overgaard Bjarklev, President of DTU and Clara Ulrich, DiscardLess coordinator
13:20 - FAO assessment of global fisheries discards: Amparo PerezRoda (FAO)
13:30 - Looking back: stories of EU regions between 2015 and 2018: Mike Fitzpatrick (Ireland), Kåre Nolde Nielsen (Norway)
13:40 - Can a discard ban be good for fishers? Modelling expected economic impacts: Ayoe Hoff (Denmark)
13:50 - Legitimate or not legitimate policy? the opinion of EU fishers: Katia Frangoudes (France)
14:00 - TAC management and choke effects in Ireland: Julia Calderwood (Ireland)
14:10 - Table Discussion
15:10 - Coffee (1/2h)

Session II: Selectivity and Avoidance (15:40 - 18:00)

Session lead: Dave Reid (Ireland) and Barry O’Neill (Denmark)

15:40 - Start of session
15:40 - The Discard Mitigation Toolbox: DiscardLess results online: Jérôme Guitton (France)
15:50 - Review of déjà vu selective gears: Barry O’ Neill (Denmark)
16:00 - Bright ideas – shining a light on selectivity: Dan Watson (UK)
16:10 - Overcoming economic barriers to selective gear uptake: Ana Witteveen (UK)
16:20 - Questions on selectivity talks
16:25 - Try it by yourself: Challenges experiments to avoid discards: Dave Reid (Ireland)
16:35 - Maps and Apps: Toni Quetglas (Spain)
16:45 - Is it possible to avoid deep sea sharks in the Azores?: Laurence Fauconnet (Portugal)
16:55 - Next steps (Panel debate / discussion)
18:00 - Wrap-up and close for the day
18:30 : Reception at DTU 202 Biosphere with meal, drinks and exhibits
21:00 - 21:30 - Busses to the city centre

 

THURSDAY 31st JANUARY

Session III: What to do with unavoidable unwanted catches? (9:30 - 11:30)

Session lead: Erling P. Larsen (Denmark) and Jónas R. Viðarsson (Iceland)

09:30 - Start of session. Coffee at disposal from 09:00
09:30 - How do Iceland manage to use 85% of a cod?: Jónas R. Viðarsson (Iceland)
09:40 - Where to invest best? Catalogue of uses and prioritisation: Bruno Iñarra (Spain)
09:50 - We are ready for discards… if they come: Peter Nymann (Denmark)
10:00 - Small landings in small harbours: George Triantaphyllidis (Greece)
10:10 - Transforming unwanted catches in responsible animal feed solution: Geert Bruggeman (Belgium)
10:20 - An automatic system for by-catches quantification and classification: Bruno Iñarra (Spain)
10:30 - Handling unwanted catches onboard: Birgir Sævarsson (Iceland)
10:40 - Next steps (Panel debate / discussion)
11:30 - Coffee + light lunch (1h)

Session IV: Ecological effects of discarding (12:30 - 13:45)

Session lead: Marie Savina-Rolland (France) and Telmo Morato (Portugal)

12:30 - Start of session
12:30 - Discard data, MSY and stock assessment: Lisa Borges (Portugal)
12:40 - Measuring and improving the survival of discards: Tom Catchpole (UK)
12:50 - But who eat them? A story of hagfish and crabs: Dave Reid (Ireland)
13:00 - Can a discard ban have an effect on the food-web?: Marie Savina-Rolland (France)
13:15 - The dark side of the selectivity paradigm: Fisheries-Induced Evolution: Richard Law (UK)
13:25 - Next steps (Discussion)
13:45 - End of session

Session V: Future perspectives for the Landing Obligation (13:45 - 15:30)

Session lead: Lisa Borges (Portugal) and Clara Ulrich (Denmark)

13:45 - Start of session
13:45 - CAM-pliance: Keeping an eye on discards with Electronic Monitoring: Kristian Schreiber Plet-Hansen (Denmark)
13:55 - Visit and speech: Eva Kjer Hansen, Danish Minister for Fisheries and Equal Opportunities and Minister for Nordic Cooperation
14:10 - What DNA can do for you! Genetic methods and the Landing Obligation: Brian Klitgaard Hansen (Denmark)
14:20 - Yes Chile can! Discards reduction and monitoring in mixed-fisheries: Luis Cocas (Chile)
14:30 - Next steps for the Landing Obligation and looking towards the next CFP reform (Discussion)
15:30 - Conference Closing

Download PDF version of conference agenda

Misty mid-week market in Newlyn.

Cloudless skies all night saw the temperature barely above freezing as a mist greeted Newlyn this morning...

first big netter to land this neap tide after fishing south of the Lizard was the Karen of Ladram...

while the much smaller Girl Pamela weighed in with plenty of pollack...

a few bream...

and healthy looking ling...

a brace of Dovers...

and a fine looking turbot...

both types of spotted dogfish...

were on display...

along with good shots of ray from all the inshore trawlers...

coley have the kind of colourful skin just crying out to be cured...

as do John Dory...

Dover sole still feature in every inshore trawler's landings...

while the middle fridge had good supplies of mackerel from the handliners working in St Ives Bay...

making a late landing...

of sardines...

which are held in iced seawater aboard the boat as soon as they are caught and iced yet again when they are transferred to the 400kg insulated tubs for transport...

apart from one boat laid up and the James RH deck lights blazing and about to sail, the harbour is empty this morning...

as a mist rolls towards the sea from Newlyn Combe...

and out to sea...

all set to sail...

as the rising sun...

spreads a warm glow over the bay.

2019 Agriculture Fair: with the Lehuche family.

2019 Agriculture Fair: with the Lehuche family, Turballe fishermen in Loire-Atlantique. Translated by Google.

At the agricultural show, sea products are present, thanks in particular to the Concours Général Agricole, in the various stands in the coastal regions. Meeting with the Lehuche, fishermen from father to son to the Turballe.

Outside, it is raining ropes and Roman Lehuche repairs nets on the soggy deck of the Tangaroa, a newly launched trawler, 18 years old in his yellow wax coat, he started fishing this summer, as soon as the fishing school finished, aboard his father's boat.

Fishing is almost a genetic inheritance: everyone on the docks knows "Tony Lehuche" . A kid from the Turballe became a fisherman-boss, who remembers his childhood running on the harbour, "at a time when there was no, then" video games ". By dint of watching the boats come and go in the harbour, he falls in turn, and begins to fish at 15 and a half. Becomes a few years after captain, thanks to a shipowner who helps him to invest in his first ship, the Troika.


Today, Anthony Lehuche owns two large pelagic trawlers and takes with him his two sons, 18 and 22 years old. "I did not force them, they chose their path," says Anthony. "It's a hard job, a profession of concessions, which requires sacrifices with respect to schedules, his wife, his family. Today, young people may be a little less ready to make these sacrifices than before. Going away at sea, for a long time, disconnecting totally, it's not easy for them, who grew up with their phone and social networks. "

Sailors from father to son

But the young recruits are still there, out of passion. When we ask Roman if he fears hard times at sea, he shrugs: "bein so inevitably, I was a little scared, but when we like that ... we like it. I chose, I did what fishing. "


"Fishing is cyclical. Anthony Lehuche

"There are very good seasons, catastrophic ... but the fish, on average, it is there ... It's been more than thirty years that I fish, 30 years that I hear that there are more fish ... However, there are always fish ! "

With his children aboard, Anthony does not protest against the quotas : " We must respect the maximum sustainable yield, the regulations are there for the fishing to continue. it can last as long as possible for my children " .

A job of the future?

He is concerned, however, external factors that come tighten the conditions of the trade: " As patron fisherman, there is concern about the price of oil , and is subject to the fish. There are things We do not control, like Brexit, and if there is a hard Brexit, there will surely be a postponement of the Channel ships in the Atlantic, including the Turbula, and that may cause problems ! "

Anyway, Anthony is not ready to leave the ship . "Me, I do that, because I only knew that finally, I'm not sure I can do anything else ..." And to want? No more, surely. "There is something very special among fishermen, they have this human leg, they are hardened men, but good guys anyway. The collective work of the crew, that's what I liked, and I still like it ".

Monday morning market in Newlyn - Fishermen's Arms up in flames.

Newlyn can always guarantee an excellent mix of rays landed on the market and this Monday, despite fish from only a couple of beam trawlers, was no exception...

along with a good supply of monk tails... 

lemon sole...

brill...

even more ray...

which fish is this?..

the colourful red mullet...

almost tropical looking John Dory...

and a particularly large cuttlefish specimen...

the beam trawlers do their bit to help keep the crabber fleet in bait...

while Dover...

lemons...

and megrim sole go to make up the bulk of a beam trawler's trip by weight if not value...

 

the odd box of octopus...

ray wings show just how meaty these delicious fish are... 

while the fine weather over the weekend allowed the handline fleet from St Ives to pitch in with some good catches of mackerel...

there's one of your boxes Mr Pascoe...

clear the decks, all is set for another trip...

Venture II prepares to land at the market...

in the early hours of this morning, four people were taken to hospital for treatment after one of Newlyn historic pubs, the Fishermen's Arms was gutted by fire...

looks like another Fishermen's Mission ceramic fish has been completed and is all set to be auctioned to help raise funds for the Mission's work in supporting fishermen and their families in times of personal need.. 

while Tom, created in tribute to all those who have lost their lives providing fish...

is greeted by another stunning break of day.

Employment statistics for UK fishing fleet published

New report reveals employment situation in the UK catching sector.

The ‘2018 Employment in the UK Fishing Fleet’ report has been published by Seafish, the public body that supports the £10bn UK seafood industry. Presenting data on the nationality, gender, age, qualification, work pattern and ways of paying workers in the UK catching sector on board and onshore, the report highlights that:

• 85% of jobs in a sample of 730 jobs were filled by UK workers.

• Non-UK workers were found mainly on demersal trawlers over 18m and Nephrops trawlers registered in Scotland and Northern Ireland and mainly serve as deckhands, engineers and in other on board roles.

• The vast majority of jobs in the sample (99%) were filled by men, with women working mostly in onshore roles, typically within family businesses.

• The average age of workers in the sample was 42, with crew (average age of 38) generally younger than vessel owners (average age of 50.)

• The highest level of qualification held by most crew was their Basic Safety Training, a minimum requirement for working on board.

• Nearly three quarters of vessel owners had a higher professional qualification, such as a skipper certification.

• The most common working pattern for on board workers was full time, all year round work. For on shore workers it was mainly part time, all year round work.

• The majority of vessel owners and employees were paid a crew share (a share of the income from sales of fish after operating costs are deducted.)

• EU workers were generally found to be paid via a fixed salary while non-EU workers tended to be employed via crewing agencies.

Commenting on the report Marta Moran Quintana, Economics Researcher, Seafish said:

“From small family businesses to large scale operations, this report helps us to better understand the people that power the UK fishing fleet.

“Providing a snapshot of employment in the fleet captured in the summer 2018, the results are perhaps not surprising but nevertheless they provide insight of the make-up of the catching sector.

“We hope they will be useful in assisting discussions and informing decisions on the employment situation and needs of the UK catching sector, particularly as the UK prepares to leave the European Union.”

Researchers interviewed nearly 300 skippers and vessel owners to establish employment data of over 700 jobs. The composition of the sample roughly reflects the composition of the fleet by home nation, vessel length and fishing technique. Seafish intends to collate and report on this data at regular intervals into the future.

The full report can be accessed here.

Is fishing during the breeding season incompatible with the renewal of stocks?

Is fishing during the breeding season incompatible with the renewal of stocks?


This section aims to provide objective answers to various questions that may arise about the resource and the fishing profession. For the second episode of "Fishing in questions", Alain Biseau, project manager at Ifremer, coordinator of fisheries expertise (Department of Biological Resources and Environment) and member of the ICES advisory committee agreed to answer our questions on the renewal of fish populations.



Q What are the conditions that ensure the renewal of a population?


Renewal of a population is assured when births compensate for deaths. A population is in equilibrium when the small fish of reproduction come to replace the fish, caught or dead in a natural way (predation, old age ...).

Ensuring the renewal, the balance, of a population is essential to the sustainability of fishing; the size of the population must be compatible with management objectives and economic profitability. Obviously, the smaller the population, the greater the risk of collapse of the resource and the fishery (which does not mean extinction of the species). There is therefore a minimum threshold of biomass below which we must not fall: it is the precautionary approach. The current management objectives that target the RMD imply keeping the populations above this minimum threshold.

Q What are the factors that can have an effect (positive / negative) on the renewal of a population and in what way?

The factors that affect the dynamics of a population and therefore its renewal are numerous. Fishing is one of many; environmental factors such as the quality of water, habitats and the ecosystem in general (including availability of food, presence or absence of predators, wind direction and currents transporting eggs and larvae) are equally important.

Fishing is often the adjustment variable because it is easier to control than the other environmental factors conditioning renewal. There are few possible human actions to positively influence the renewal of a population (difficult to consider putting ice in the sea to cool it as noted (with good reason!) A former president of the CNPMEM) except limit negative impacts (reduction of fishing effort, spatio-temporal closure). In some particular cases, however, the establishment of artificial reefs may help to improve population renewal, either by limiting fishing or by providing habitats favorable to the development of eggs and larvae.

Q What is the relationship between spawning biomass and the level of recruitment?


To have babies, you need parents. No breeding, no new births and therefore no recruitment, this is the only certainty. But, beyond a certain amount, an increase in the number of breeders does not systematically lead to an increase in recruits, when certain environmental conditions induce high mortality of the young stages. On the contrary, it has often been observed that when the number of breeders is lower, the survival rate of eggs and larvae is better. There is therefore no direct proportionality between breeding biomass and recruitment beyond a certain threshold.

Below this threshold, the risk of collapse (very low level of recruitment and therefore no renewal of the stock) is high. This is called a precautionary threshold or biological safety limit.

Is there an optimum period (in relation to breeding) for fishing? In other words: when to fish? before, during or after the breeding season?

A fish caught before, during or after the breeding season is primarily a dead fish. Fished before, it will not contribute to the reproduction of the year, but fished after, it will not contribute to that of the following year ... From the strict point of view of the quantity of reproducers, it is advisable to frame / to limit the total annual withdrawals to ensure a sufficient quantity of breeders; the capture period does not matter.

Q Is spawning / spawning compatible with stock renewal and RMD operations?


Once the quantity of breeding stock is maintained at a sufficient level and the breeding process is not affected, spawning or breeding season fishing is not incompatible with the renewal of the stock and its exploitation at RMD.

Q Is spawning fishing a risk of collapse for fish stocks?

To qualify the previous answer, even if the spawning level is maintained at a sufficient level at the stock level, fishing on the spawning grounds may present two risks: the first is the disturbance by fishing (but this is also true for any other anthropogenic activity) of the reproduction process (dispersion of the benches, acoustic interference, etc.). The second is the possible local depletion (we capture all the fish of a spawning ground) which would lead to an impoverishment of the genetic diversity of the populations concerned and therefore of their potential of adaptation.

In short, fishing on the spawning grounds, when spawners congregate, can only be considered with the guarantee of maintaining a sufficient level of breeding stock and genetic diversity. It can not be conceived without strict supervision.

Q Are there critical operating thresholds at which managers need to adopt management measures specific to the breeding season?

When a resource is very over-exploited (very low number of breeders) all means must be deployed to ensure its recovery. The protection or restoration of areas of fishing interest (spawning grounds, but also nurseries) is one of the means. The measures taken in this case must then concern all human activities (fishing and others).

In addition, when several trades target a stock, some during the breeding season with large catches, others throughout the year with smaller catches, the necessary reduction in total catches is often easier to obtain (and generally impacts fewer vessels) by limiting fishing during the breeding season, and therefore the activity of a trade type.

Q What are the advantages and disadvantages of spawning?


There is a need to distinguish between spawning (area and time when fish are concentrated for reproduction) and fishing during the breeding season (without breeding concentration).

Fishing during the breeding season has no advantage or disadvantage (except those possibly related to the quality of the fish and / or its recovery) provided that the maintenance of a minimum quantity of breeders is ensured by an overall limitation of catches and / or or good selectivity. Regarding spawning, we have already mentioned the disadvantages (behavioral disturbance, risk of genetic impoverishment), but there may be advantages: for vessels targeting fish concentrations (especially during the breeding season) the quantity of fish caught per unit effort (and therefore per liter of diesel) is higher than that captured the rest of the year. However, the activity of these targeted fisheries on concentrations can strongly impact that of other trades, especially those who practice all year; not to mention recreational fishing.

So there are advantages and disadvantages. Fisheries management must reconcile the three pillars of sustainable development: environmental, economic and social. For sequential fisheries (catches of a stock made by several trades that succeed one another over time) a sharing of fishing opportunities between all users (or even a sharing of space) seems essential. This sharing is not biology but a political decision.

Q Is the share of EU-level breeding catches compared to total catches known?


Not really. However, since the catches are made, most of the year, those caught during the breeding season constitute a significant proportion of the total catches.

Translated by Google - Full story here: