Rebecca FR143 coming to Newlyn soon as the new Crystal Sea III

Just posted on YouTube by Tommy West:

From one young Scot filling in, 2nd last trip of the year in 2015, me doing a chance shot, nice fishing, weather mental at times, top guys to go to sea with, brilliant square up :-)

Trouble brewing north of the border over cod and the LO.

Ian Duncan, the Conservative MEP for Scotland, has slammed EU rules that will mean fishermen who catch white fish will be treated differently to those who fish mackerel or herring.

When the Fish Discard Ban passed through Parliament, Ian helped negotiate a two-year 'period of grace' whereby fishermen would not be penalised for accidental or unintended breaches of the new law, but rather provided with guidance on the rules.

The introduction of the  Discard Ban has been phased, with pelagic species, such as herring and mackerel, covered from 1st January 2015, while most white fish species, including haddock, whiting, and saithe, will be covered from 1st January 2016. Cod will be covered only from 1st January 2017. The intention of the rules was to ensure that fishermen were treated fairly and that the two year grace period would apply to all fisheries as they came under the discard ban.

However, the European Council argues that the 'period of grace’ for all fisheries started on 1st of January 2015, for all species. The effect of this interpretation is that only the pelagic fisheries will benefit from the full two-year period of grace. White fish fishermen will have only 12 months of grace, and those who fish for cod will secure no grace whatever, despite the fact it is the inclusion of cod which will present the most significant challenge to fishermen.

Today, Ian raised the issue with the Dutch Fisheries Minister, Martijn Van Dam, representing the European Council and secured agreement that the Council would look into the matter. Consequently, Ian has written formally to Mr Van Dam.

Commenting, Ian said:

"The current interpretation of this law is madness. For a period of grace to run out before the trickiest of species is affected by the ban, specifically cod, is baffling. Cod fishermen will rightly be furious. I will continue to fight to ensure that this daft approach is reversed."

NFFO PRESIDENT SLAMS RAY DECISION

In a letter to UK fisheries Minister George Eustice - local MP for Camborne and Redruth, NFFO President Paul Trebilcock, has bitterly criticised the decision to add small-eyed ray to the list of species fishermen can’t retain.

Dear Minister

Small-eyed Ray

The decision by the December Council to include small-eyed ray on the list of species that must not be landed was made with no advance notice, no discussion with the people potentially affected and no thought about the consequences.

But there are consequences. In the Bristol Channel, where for some vessels small-eyed ray constitutes 40% of their annual catch, vessels are already being put up for sale, and fishermen forced from the industry, with dire consequences for families, mortgages and futures.

This is an abysmal way to run an industry. And it should not escape your notice that along with the bass measures agreed at the December Council, it is inshore fishermen who will bear the brunt.

A completely arbitrary decision, made behind closed doors, with no prior discussion and devastating consequences is almost the epitome of bad governance and completely destroys any faith that fishermen may have had that you and your team were in Brussels to protect their interests; or dissuade them from the view that the European Commission is an institution that has only malevolent intentions towards them.

Fishermen in the Bristol Channel have been amongst the most progressive in the country and been at the cutting edge of developing ways of harvesting rays in a sustainable way. A voluntary increase in the minimum landing size, a voluntary seasonal closure, along with cooperation with scientists in identifying individual species in the ray catch, have been amongst their past contributions. The sense of disillusionment and betrayal from those who worked in this positive way, only to see their livelihoods subsequently destroyed is overwhelming.

What is the evidence that justified such extreme measures? Surely this kind of measure with these kind of consequences should be used only in the most extreme emergency situation?

Were there no alternatives? These are some of the questions that should have been asked before some bureaucrat blithely added a species to a list.

Can this decision be reversed and quickly? You should already know that the NFFO can be found wherever it is necessary to work on complex and challenging fisheries management issues; and the management of skates and rays is certainly one of those areas. But you must realise how difficult it is going to be to get fishermen to engage with scientists and fisheries administrators against background of arbitrary decisions like this.

We understand that there is a potential to reverse this decision at the March Council through an amendment to the TACs and Quotas Regulation. Damage has been done and a mistake has been made but the damage can be limited by swift remedial action. We eagerly await your confirmation that the UK will take the lead in rectifying the situation.

Yours sincerely,

Paul Trebilcock

President

National Federation of Fishermen’s Organisations

Fintastic #FishyFriday is here!

Feeling the weather, #FishyFriday finds Newlyn short of the piscine pleasure this morning with just a few dozen boxes from a handful of inshore boats working in the lee of the Lizard...

so the quality of fish like these red gurnards...

red mullet...

bass...

mackerel...

and grey mullet...

mean all these are Grade A...

top draw fish...

spot the difference, top herring, bottom Cornish sardine...

more than a Longhsot...

for these bass too...

and mackerel...

the only Newlyn boat to make a landing was the ever-resourceful Imogen II...

with a single haul made before the weather cut short the day's trawling in the Bay...

with just a handful of boxes to sample...

Gary from Cefas makers light work, first making a small incision inside the gut cavity... 

before using a pair of tweezers to remove the otolith...

and input the length data...

just one of the boats landing to Nwlyn...

it's a family affair...

with a closer look at the working deck on one of Rowse's crabbers - unlike other fishing vessels the fish hold or 'vivier' is not protected by a hatch coaming as the hold is itself ope to the sea below the waterline in order to facilitate the flow of oxygenated water around tons of crab while the boat is at sea...

contrast that to the beam trawler Sapphire where the fish pounds and fishroom hatch are well protected from incoming seas...

all set for the next day at sea.

Hunting Cornish sardine

Taking advantage of the offshore wind even though there are gusts well over 30mph the ring netter Asthore is out early this morning looking for the elusive Cornish sardine.

Bugaled Breizh - 15th January 2004.

MFV Bugaled Breizh was a French trawler from Loctudy, Finistère, whose sinking with all hands on 15 January 2004 remains unresolved. While it appears likely that the ship was pulled under by a submarine, a specific submarine could not be identified as a number of submarines of several nations were in the vicinity of the accident site.

The accident

The motorized fishing vessel (MFV) was built in 1986 by the Bretagne Sud shipyard in Belz.[1] Bugaled Breizh (Children of Brittany) capsized with five crew about 14 nautical miles (26 km) southwest of Lizard Point, Cornwall on 15 January 2004 at 12h25 UTC. The ship briefly radioed that it was sinking, and disappeared apparently very quickly in good weather conditions; only two bodies of the five sailors were recovered at the time, while a third body was recovered on 10 July 2004 during salvage operations.[2]

Bugaled Breizh website for the whole story.

Prime Product - South West Fish Merchants 1992.

Going back to 1992 - this journal published on behalf of the members of the South West Fish Merchants and Pelagic Producers makes for an excellent read - especially given the current topicality of certain key issues mentioned! 

"The CFP in tatters" - whatever next!