Through the Gaps! - Newlyn Fishing News Cornwall UK fish commercial fishing fish cooking and art

Monday 18 July 2016

Fine weather allows AIS to pick up a 21m Spanish pole and line tuna boat off deep Cornwall!

VesselTracker's AIS picked up the 21m Spanish pole and line tuna boat 450 miles WSW of Land's End this morning. No doubt there are a number of other Spanish and French tuna boats all searching for tuna in the area. Normally small boats are not picked up by AIS more than 50 miles from the nearest receiver - but in exceptional weather - no wind, a flat sea and fog - AIS can pick boats up over hundreds of miles away!..

The boat is about 180 miles west of the edge of the continental shelf where the bottom in well in excess of 2000 fathoms.

Sunday 17 July 2016

ENGOs and Foundations next attempt to halt fishing - Déjà vu all over again

Back in 2002, when various groups and people had figured out that the creation of things called marine protected areas (MPAs) could be sold politically as a mechanism for “saving the oceans,” the people at the Pew Charitable Trusts and the Conservation Law Foundation hired a marketing firm, Edge Research, to demonstrate that New Englanders and Maritime Canadians would be firmly behind using them to put even more fishermen out of work. They used what they termed “public opinion polling” to demonstrate this. I devoted a couple of thousand words to a critique on this exercise, and that FishNet is available at http://www.fishingnj.org/netusa21.htm.

Replies from Sara Clark Stuart at the Conservation Law Foundation and from Lisa Dropkin at Edge Research (to which I added additional comments) are at http://www.AnnotatedDropkinMemo.pdf.

Well, borrowing from a line made popular by the late Heather O’Rourke in the movie Poltergeist II, they’re back! Only this time they’re trying to convince the Obama White House that two areas off the New England coast are deserving of protection in perpetuity by being designated as National Monuments. Needless to say, their campaign to do this comes with the to be expected major PR campaign, getting as much mileage as possible from what appears to be saturation-level social media manipulation and another Edge Research “strategic marketing survey.”

One of the more clever things in this most recent bout of “market research” was the lumping of mining, drilling and fishing together. This seems to me to be tantamount to asking people how they feel about crimes committed by “murderers, rapists and shop lifters.” After the recent (and very possibly still ongoing) BP disaster in the Gulf of Mexico we all have a pretty accurate idea of what the potential downsides are to drilling in the oceans, and who hasn’t seen pictures of huge open pit mines (if you are one of the few who hasn’t, Google “open pit mine” and click on images)? Not in our ocean, huh?

But can anyone make a rational connection between mining, drilling and fishing? Is there any comparison between the gross negligence practiced by our federal regulators and the offshore oil industry and a fleet of fishing boats working sustainably to provide our consumers with healthful seafood? Can tearing down mountains and creating holes that rival the Grand Canyon be equated with the “damage” done by hooks and nets? Not in the real world, for sure. But in the fantasy ocean world that mega-foundation millions are being spent to create there’s apparently no difference – or the people who have been bought by those foundation’s millions want everyone to believe there isn’t.

In a memo presenting their survey results and their conclusions the people at Edge Research write “while there is currently no drilling and mining in these areas, there is some commercial fishing activity. Protecting these areas would prohibit the fishing activity in these limited areas and could result in a small adverse economic impact on commercial fishing.” It’s axiomatic but it probably doesn’t hurt to state that what is “a small adverse economic impact” to the people at Edge Research, at Pew, at the Conservation Law Foundation or at any of the other involved organizations who can with clear conscience equate the impacts of fishing with the impacts of mining and drilling is unquestionably the difference between staying in business and bankruptcy to dozens of small New England businesses. But the drillers will keep on drilling and the miners will keep on digging, just like always.

Do you want the fisheries that you depend on to be controlled by politically spawned dictates from the White House or by a science-based system that is based on input from you and other stakeholders? Do you want federal fisheries policy to be a result of manipulations by professional pollsters working for anti-fishing ENGOs and the foundations that support them?

This isn't just a New England problem. This allows any anti-fishing group with enough dollars and enough political clout to ride roughshod over a fisheries management that, while not yet perfect is something that we've all invested a tremendous in imporoving. Below I've attached an email from the National Coalition of Fisshing Communities addressing this issue as well. New York Congressman Lee Zeldin has prepared legislation that, while not a permanent fix, will put the Foundations/ENGOs plans on ice for a year. This will allow us time to work on a permanent solution. I don't know this fared last night but regardless of that call your local House Member's and your Senators' offices and let them know how important this issue is to you and to your future in fishing.

Article courtesy of Nils Stolpe FishNet USA

Saturday 16 July 2016

Landing Cornish sardines video.

Friday 15 July 2016

IIFET 2016: -= Industry innovation + Landing Obligation = profitable, discard-free future?

Environmental Defense Fund examines how the fishing industry is already adapting, innovating and beginning to overcome the challenges posed by the ‘discard ban’.

“It is possible to prosper with increased selectivity” was the take-home message from a dynamic panel session held yesterday at the International Institute for Fisheries Economics & Trade (IIFET) by Environmental Defense Fund Europe. Fisherman Peter Olsson of the Swedish Fishermen’s Producer Organisation – quoted above – spoke of his experiences mitigating choke species to remain prosperous under the Landing Obligation, saying:

“We just need to make use of the tools available. With the right combination of tools and policy measures we can create the right conditions for sustainability and strong businesses.”

Olsson was one of a range of speakers contributing to a special panel – part of IIFET’s tailored “Industry and Policy” day – on the theme: “Adapt, improvise and overcome: fishermen’s responses to the Landing Obligation”. Panel Chair, Dr Erik Lindebo, economist and Senior Consultant to Environmental Defense Fund, led a wide-ranging discussion of tools and approaches being applied across Europe that can offer support as industry moves towards full implementation of the Landing Obligation by 2019.

Fellow panelist and UK fisherman, David Stevens (Crystal Sea, Newlyn) added:
“The collaborative approach to implementation is truly worthwhile. When you give fishermen the ability and incentive to deal with the issues themselves, they are able to come up with the best solutions. Fishermen need the freedom to take control of their fisheries.”

Commenting on the lively discussion, Dr. Lindebo said: “The Landing Obligation has represented a huge change in the fishing landscape, and will continue to do so. But we’re surrounded by optimistic, pragmatic solutions that can make a difference, especially to mitigate some of the all-important choke problems. The key now is to ensure fishing industry and policy are on the same page when it comes to fully utilising the management toolbox, allowing innovation and best-practice to come to the fore via the simplest route possible”.

The in-depth discussion covered small-scale fisheries, scientific perspectives, and in-depth industry comment on the future of fishing under the LO. The importance of the processing sector was also underlined, as David Parker of Young’s Seafood highlighted the entrepreneurial talent within the sector, and the value this offers to supply-chain innovation, including at the ‘business end’ of catching. Parker presented in detail on Young’s collaborative new project ‘Trawlight’: an initiative using sea-water activated lights, and ‘escape holes’ in gear, to reduce unwanted juvenile and choke catches.

Mike Park, of the Scottish Whitefish Producers’ Association, and Clara Ulrich of DTU-AQUA, National Institute of Aquatic Resources and DISCARDLESS, also joined in the debate – underlining the importance of taking a positive approach in searching out the best ways to deliver a secure fishing future for industry.

Offering his thoughts at the end of the session, Chair Dr Lindebo reflected: “There are significant challenges with the Landing Obligation. But with a varied toolbox of methods, and industry expertise at our disposal we can begin to tailor appropriate solutions. It is of fundamental importance that the fisheries sector and all other stakeholders are on board with the process, all across Europe.”

(IIFET2016 Aberdeen – June 14, 2016).

The conference agenda:

Wild Capture Fisheries	Adaptations to evolving governance International fisheries management & models of co-operation Hierarchies of fishing rights allocations – country, producers organisations & individuals Bio-economic modelling – estimating the present value of different harvesting strategies Adoption & adaptation of technical measures to improve resilience & profitability Ecosystems based management, MPAs
Aquaculture	New species – salmon and more? New processes – onshore and seawards? Capture based acquaculture New products – farming not only for food? New markets – emerging alternatives
Processing	Integration of captured & farmed raw material supplies The reformed CFP and its emergent supply chain of discards Delivering sustainability through alternative processes and products
Seafood Logistics	Fish welfare and the addition of value Landing live Flying fresh Net-based logistics – challenging traditional supply chain models
Markets	Improving understanding through innovative use of available, but ignored, market data Seafood segmentation and positioning strategies Envisioning, shaping and communicating future markets Shifting global power – implications for trade
Consumption	The emergent importance of sustainability labels & other attributes in seafood purchase and consumption decisions Consumption of Authentic and Adulterated products Improving health though fish consumption – limits to gains?
The BIGGER PICTURE	Fish versus competing animal proteins – swimming against agricultural tide Economics of recreational fisheries Implications of fish stock responses to climate change for the seafood sector – new global value chains? Sea level change and the emerging submergence of seafood infrastructure Promoting integration – policy lessons from theory and practice
Special Feature: Industry & PolicyDay	Fishing business owners and policy makers from across northern Europe take part in a day of policy-relevant discussion panels, workshops and presentations Can economics help resolve policy challenges? Discussion of the key emergent outcomes from previous sessions regarding the future co-operation and integration of seafood stakeholders: Wild capture fisheries Aquaculture Processing Seafood logistics Markets Consumption The business of fishing - a film made by Seafish
Special Sessions (Open)	Economics of Protected Resources Fisheries, Aquaculture and Global Food Security The economics of a discard ban policy Payments for Ecosystem Services in fisheries and aquaculture – A rose by any other name? Transdisciplinary research in fishery science – are we making progress influencing policy making? Present and Emerging Arctic Fisheries Unlocking the sustainable wealth potential of aquatic resources and ecosystems: Beyond traditional commercial fisheries management ‘SUCCESS: Reinforcing the competitiveness of the seafood sector’ Game theory and fisheries Innovations in governance of highly migratory and transboundary fisheries Fishing Cost Data Collection and Implications in Fisheries Management Sustainability of fisheries and aquaculture: the multidisciplinary approach as a key for success Economics of Bycatch Recognising and Assessing Social and Economic Values in Fisheries Gender Research as a New Frontier in Fisheries and Aquaculture Economics: In the Footsteps of Rosemary Firth The Ghosts of Adam Smith: The Past, Present, and Future of Fishery Subsidies Measuring and managing risk-taking and safety in commercial fishing
Special Sessions (Closed)	Analyzing behavioral responses to regulation – what can be learned for management? Improving Food Security and Reducing Poverty through Intra-regional Fish Trade in Sub-Saharan Africa Creating shared value through stakeholders’ involvement to strengthen the seafood competitiveness Economics of Bycatch Gender Research as a New Frontier in Fisheries and Aquaculture Economics: In the Footsteps of Rosemary Firth
Please note that some sessions are still be to confirmed and the final list may be different.