UK fishing industry is now witness the revival of a traditional fishing method, Seine net fishing, as fuel prices force skippers to look for more economical techniques. It si said that this old technique is proving less fuel intensive than trawling. In this technique fish are surrounded by ropes laid out on the seabed. As the ropes are hauled in, the fish are herded into the path of the trawl shaped net and caught.
It is informed that an international workshop was held in Iceland at the end of May to
critically assess seine netting as an economical and environmentally friendly method of fishing. Ken Arkley, Seafish Project Manager, is part of an ICES Working Group that has been asked to look at seine net fisheries globally and identify the key benefits of this fishing method. The assessment includes reduced fuel consumption, high quality fish and low environmental impact.
But this age old method has some negative aspects to this method such as gear selectivity and technological creep. According to Ken the workshop was a great forum for speakers from Iceland and across Europe to share their experience and expertise in seine netting, or Danish seining. It is also told that the popularity of seining declined in the 1990s as vessels switched to twin-rig trawling and took advantage of relatively low fuel prices, but there is no doubt there is now a lot more interest in the UK in this method as a consequence of the current fuel crisis.
The idea of reviving seine netting was given by Leslie Tait, Fisheries Technology Manager from the North Atlantic Fisheries College Marine Centre in Shetland, with support from Seafish.
