The big theme running through #Gap2 's International Symposium in Barcelona this week was the increasing number of fishermen willing to provide fishing data - and not just historic data but live data - and an increasing desire by scientists and researchers to use that data for the management of effort. Simplistically put, at present there is a huge two year plus lag in the time that catch data gets ratified by the management processes that govern CFP quotas - increasingly fishermen are seeing the results of their effort and selectivity approach to fishing produce huge hauls of fish - consistently in areas where there are supposed to be low stocks!
The paper below considers how things could be different and provides a way forward to use fisher's data.
All of the Gap2 presentations can be viewed via the Bambuser website and the agenda here @GAP2_project account, and follow hastags #GAP2IS, #collaboration and #GAP2simposio:
Friday 27 February 2015
It's a fine not-so-fishy #FishyFriday
Bringing a little Spring-like sunshine over the Bay this morning...
and the prom still lacking the handrail...
casting a long shadow across Newlyn Green...
and an harbour almost empty of boats...
the fine weather means that all hands are heading out...
through the gaps...
and away to sea...
in a gentle swell...
except for the Algrie with her fuel problem...
the Mission has the usual bunch of suspects taking breakfast...
if you can, get a chance to catch up with the big voices that are the Fishermen's Friends around the coast next month.
Clash of the Celtic tigers - Newlyn's Jack Nowell to run out for England against Ireland in Sunday's #SixNations
Right now you can win a copy of Salt of the Earth signed by England's Celtic cousin and rugby star Jack Nowell. Tickets can be bought from the Star Inn in Newlyn - great excuse to enjoy a pint with Debbie and the team in one of Newlyn's finest harbourside pubs!
From the #MMO - Consultation on March catch limits - a must read!
Consultation on March
2015 catch limits
The following is our provisional estimate of the catch limits that will apply for the main quota species for the under 10 metre pool for March 2015 and a guide on the anticipated catch limits on for the rest of the year.
The estimates are based on the level of quota available to us today (18 February 2015), and it is our intention to continue to seek gifts and swaps in of stocks for all of those listed below. The limits below are proposed because setting at this level should ensure that the fisheries will remain open for the whole calendar year and wherever possible factors such as seasonality and best anticipated market prices are also factored in. As it stands we are unable to monitor uptake in the over 10 metre Non Sector in the same way because there are less vessels and uptake patterns are less predictable.
We are unable to assume we can swap in stocks just because we have a good track record of doing this over previous years. It is also worth stressing that to find enough quota for the key targeted stocks it is often necessary to trade away other stocks where uptake is less than we anticipated.
We are happy to take proposals on changes to these limits to take into account local factors, but because quotas are set for a large area of coastline we have to balance the needs of each local fleet against keeping the fishery open for the full year. For your information we have included some figures to highlight some of the issues relating to key stocks.
The following is our provisional estimate of the catch limits that will apply for the main quota species for the under 10 metre pool for March 2015 and a guide on the anticipated catch limits on for the rest of the year.
The estimates are based on the level of quota available to us today (18 February 2015), and it is our intention to continue to seek gifts and swaps in of stocks for all of those listed below. The limits below are proposed because setting at this level should ensure that the fisheries will remain open for the whole calendar year and wherever possible factors such as seasonality and best anticipated market prices are also factored in. As it stands we are unable to monitor uptake in the over 10 metre Non Sector in the same way because there are less vessels and uptake patterns are less predictable.
We are unable to assume we can swap in stocks just because we have a good track record of doing this over previous years. It is also worth stressing that to find enough quota for the key targeted stocks it is often necessary to trade away other stocks where uptake is less than we anticipated.
We are happy to take proposals on changes to these limits to take into account local factors, but because quotas are set for a large area of coastline we have to balance the needs of each local fleet against keeping the fishery open for the full year. For your information we have included some figures to highlight some of the issues relating to key stocks.
Thursday 26 February 2015
Bottom trawling not as bad for California sea life
Bottom trawling — the fishing method of dragging open nets along the ocean floor — has been widely criticized for its potential to damage sensitive marine habitat structures. That damage may be negligible off most parts of the California coast, according to a recent study conducted by ocean scientists and published in Fishery Bulletin.
Researchers from California State University Monterey Bay, The Nature Conservancy and Pomona College found that California’s largely soft-bottom sea floor saw negligible lasting impacts from small-footrope trawling equipment.
“Surprisingly to us, we found pretty negligible effects to the sea floor and to fish habitat in these soft-bottom sediments on the continental shelf,” said Mary Gleason, lead scientist for the Nature Conservancy’s California Oceans Program.
During the three-year study, fishermen were asked to trawl patches of the ocean floor off of Morro Bay in Central California. The areas that were trawled were analyzed by underwater photos and video and compared with adjacent areas that had been left untouched.
The researchers found that, while some scour marks remained in the test patches more than a year after trawling, photos showed some smoothing was occurring.
They also found no significant differences between trawled and control plots with regards to invertebrate species.
The scientists concluded that the negligible impacts were due to the fact that California’s continental shelf mostly comprises sand and mud and not rocky coral that takes great lengths of time to form.
“Trawling in rocky areas, with long-lived corals is going to be much more damaging and have a bigger, longer lasting impact than trawling in soft bottom habitats made up of mud and sand,” Gleason said.
Gleason said that the results may provide support for changing how California’s coast is fished. Most of California’s state waters are closed to bottom trawling.
“I think one of the main messages is that bottom trawling impacts are very context dependent. It depends on the types of gear you’re using, the types of habitats being trawled and how often trawling occurs,” Gleason said.
Bottom trawling is the most effective method for catching certain types of flatfish, including species of cod and sole.
“Rather than just sort of banning trawling everywhere, we need to acknowledge that trawling is the only way to catch a lot of important seafood,” Gleason said.
Though bottom trawling can be a polarizing topic within ocean conservation circles, some environmental groups praised the study for increasing understanding of trawling’s impacts.
“It really is an advance, because that level of study and scientific rigor hadn’t been done before,” said Geoff Shester, California campaign director for Oceana. “We hope to see that be replicated in more habitats so we don’t just learn about the impacts in the place they studied, but how can we apply this in other types of areas as well.”
Shester said that the collaboration with commercial fisherman on the study and other shows projects shows the potential for responsible fishing in the future.
“By getting better science and working together, we’ve actually been able to find win-wins where we actually increase fishing opportunities while also simultaneously increasing the overall protection to sensitive marine habitats up and down the West Coast,” Shester said
http://www.scpr.org/news/2015/02/17/49867/bottom-trawling-not-as-bad-for-california-sea-life/
Researchers from California State University Monterey Bay, The Nature Conservancy and Pomona College found that California’s largely soft-bottom sea floor saw negligible lasting impacts from small-footrope trawling equipment.
“Surprisingly to us, we found pretty negligible effects to the sea floor and to fish habitat in these soft-bottom sediments on the continental shelf,” said Mary Gleason, lead scientist for the Nature Conservancy’s California Oceans Program.
During the three-year study, fishermen were asked to trawl patches of the ocean floor off of Morro Bay in Central California. The areas that were trawled were analyzed by underwater photos and video and compared with adjacent areas that had been left untouched.
The researchers found that, while some scour marks remained in the test patches more than a year after trawling, photos showed some smoothing was occurring.
They also found no significant differences between trawled and control plots with regards to invertebrate species.
The scientists concluded that the negligible impacts were due to the fact that California’s continental shelf mostly comprises sand and mud and not rocky coral that takes great lengths of time to form.
“Trawling in rocky areas, with long-lived corals is going to be much more damaging and have a bigger, longer lasting impact than trawling in soft bottom habitats made up of mud and sand,” Gleason said.
Gleason said that the results may provide support for changing how California’s coast is fished. Most of California’s state waters are closed to bottom trawling.
“I think one of the main messages is that bottom trawling impacts are very context dependent. It depends on the types of gear you’re using, the types of habitats being trawled and how often trawling occurs,” Gleason said.
Bottom trawling is the most effective method for catching certain types of flatfish, including species of cod and sole.
“Rather than just sort of banning trawling everywhere, we need to acknowledge that trawling is the only way to catch a lot of important seafood,” Gleason said.
Though bottom trawling can be a polarizing topic within ocean conservation circles, some environmental groups praised the study for increasing understanding of trawling’s impacts.
“It really is an advance, because that level of study and scientific rigor hadn’t been done before,” said Geoff Shester, California campaign director for Oceana. “We hope to see that be replicated in more habitats so we don’t just learn about the impacts in the place they studied, but how can we apply this in other types of areas as well.”
Shester said that the collaboration with commercial fisherman on the study and other shows projects shows the potential for responsible fishing in the future.
“By getting better science and working together, we’ve actually been able to find win-wins where we actually increase fishing opportunities while also simultaneously increasing the overall protection to sensitive marine habitats up and down the West Coast,” Shester said
http://www.scpr.org/news/2015/02/17/49867/bottom-trawling-not-as-bad-for-california-sea-life/
Gap2 "Why Collaborate? A Fisher's View" - conference video excerpt.
"Why Collaborate? A Fisher's View"
Benoît Guerin Fishing Skipper, International Consultant Port Vell, Alan Steer Fisher, UK, Mart Undrest Estonian Fishermen's Association, Paul Piscopo Fisher, Malta Jan Ingvald Andersen SFA, Norway and David Stevens from Newlyn and the whitefish trawler Crystal Sea Fishing.
The conference video begins with each of the panel members introducing themselves and why they are at the conference to talk about their collaborative work. For example, the Crystal Sea II has carried catch monitoring CCTV aboard the boat for three years.
Wednesday 25 February 2015
Consultation on Options for the South Inshore and South Offshore Marine Plans-
Closing on 4 March 2015
The Marine Management Organisation (MMO) is currently preparing marine plans for the South Inshore and South Offshore Marine Plan Areas.
The MMO has already undertaken a number of stages of plan preparation;
· analysing the evidence,
· identifying issues,
· drafting the Vision and Objectives.
For information on the South marine planning process to date please go to the South marine plans pages on the MMO website.
The MMO is now launching consultation on draft plan Options.
The Options process focuses on the consideration of different ways of achieving the draft plan objectives and vision, to make sure that the choices made and their implications have been considered.
We have produced an Options report, explaining the options and this is available to view here. This is an informal consultation on the Options report and it runs for four weeks from the 3 February to the 4 March 2015.
There are a number of consultation questions we would like you to address in your response:
Question 1 - Which is your preferred option? In answering this question, please note it is not possible to select a combination. However, in your response to question 3 you can tell us if you prefer a combination of the options.
Question 2 - Why do you prefer this option?
Question 3 - Would you make any changes to this option and, if so, what? Would you like to combine aspects of different options into a new option? For example, if you prefer option 1 for objective 1 but option 3 for objective 2, please tell us.
Question 4 – Do you agree with the intent of the policies? If not how would you change them?
Question 5 – Please indicate those issues you feel are out of scope (area/range/remit) (eg. those appropriate for signposting rather than marine plan policy).
Please respond to the consultation via the online consultation tool
https://www.connect.marinemanagement.org.uk/consultations/south-options
We look forward to your response.
Many thanks,
The Marine Planning Team
Her Majesty’s Government – Marine Management Organisation
Lancaster House,
Hampshire Court,
Newcastle upon Tyne
NE4 7YH.
Tel: 0191 376 2790
Web: www.gov.uk/mmo
Twitter: @the_MMO
Facebook: /MarineManagementOrganisation
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