New measures to reduce discards of Scotland’s valuable fish stocks were announced today.
Chairing the third meeting of the Scottish Fisheries Council, Fisheries Secretary Richard Lochhead confirmed that a ‘Discards Summit’ will take place in Edinburgh on September 25.
The summit will bring together industry representatives, scientists, environmentalists and policy makers to discuss measures to dramatically reduce discarding, drawing on best practice being developed in Scotland and internationally.
Mr Lochhead also announced that he is to meet with Norwegian State Secretary Vidar Ulriksen at the start of next month to discuss the issue of discards.
Both countries believe it will be a crucial issue at this autumn’s EU/Norway negotiations and the December Council.
Speaking after today’s SFC meeting, Mr Lochhead said:
“I am not alone in believing that discards are an environmental and economic waste – fishermen, scientists and the public are all in agreement on this issue. I am determined to work with the sector and colleagues across Europe to bring about a radical reduction in the levels of discards in Scottish fisheries.
“I will also shortly be meeting my Norwegian counter-part to discuss the serious problem of discards in the North Sea. Unacceptable levels of discards have arisen due to some of the bureaucracy and regulations currently in place. I’m looking forward to developing a joint approach with Norway on putting an end to this waste of healthy and precious natural resources.
“Tackling discards will be a priority for the autumn and beyond and the Discards Summit is crucial to our ambition of reducing this major waste of resource.
“The Scottish fishing industry and the Scottish Government are already taking decisive action to tackle discards, including under the ground-breaking Conservation Credits Scheme. Now we need to build on that progress and extend our ambition even further.
“We are entering a crucial phase for our fishing fleet and today was a welcome opportunity to listen to the industry’s concerns.
“We are keen to explore together ways to allow fishermen in the North Sea to land much more of the cod they currently catch and are forced to discard – catching less but landing more.
“Our fishermen deserve praise for pioneering new and innovative measures which offer a more sustainable way of conserving fish stocks. I know that fishermen in Scotland are as frustrated as I am at having to lose precious resources in this way and we will support them in resolving this situation.
“There is no doubt that Scotland is at the forefront of developing solutions. The workshop with industry and other experts at the end of September will help us develop and promote even more solutions, drawing on Scottish and international experience.”
Bertie Armstrong, chief executive of the Scottish Fishermen’s Federation, said:
“Self evidently, no-one in the Scottish fishing industry would support the discarding of marketable fish. We abhor it and are already actively engaged in a spread of initiatives and projects with Scottish Government and fisheries scientists to reduce the levels as quickly as sensibly possible. We are committed to this necessary change, but there are no simple or single answers.
“Success, fishery by fishery, will stem from a combination of measures including such things as regulatory change, the use of more selective gear, and carefully applied temporary closures to avoid catching unwanted fish in the first place.”
The SFC brings together representatives of the fishing industry, conservation groups and the scientific community. It aims to ensure a sustainable future for fishing in Scotland. The SFC provides a direct line of communication between the Scottish Government and all sectors associated with commercial sea fishing.
Membership of the Scottish Fisheries Council covers all sectors related to the fishing industry, including fishermen, processors, retailers, community representatives, fisheries scientists and policy makers, environmental groups, enforcement and industry bodies. One of its key roles has been to help promote the new Conservation Credits scheme agreed as part of the deal reached at the December Fisheries Council in Brussels last year.
The Scottish Conservation Credits scheme was launched on Friday 1 February 2008 following the historic agreement at the December Fisheries Council which gave the Scottish Government unprecedented flexibility to run its own days-at-sea scheme. A Conservation Credits Scheme Steering Group, whose membership includes industry representatives, scientists and green NGOs, oversees the design, implementation and operation of the scheme. Under the scheme, fishermen are able to demonstrate their commitment to conserving fragile fish stocks by implementing measures to reduce fishing mortality and discards such as the use of selective square mesh panels in fishing nets. The scheme also expands the innovative Real-Time Closures scheme on which Scotland led last autumn, protecting cod where they aggregate in the North Sea.
