It has taken a while for the European Parliament to get round to an objective examination of demersal trawling as a landmark conference hosted by MEP and rapporteur Niclas Herbst brought together leading scientists on seabed habitats and bottom fishing, along with representatives from the Commission, key stakeholders from the fishing sector and civil society.
Scientists presented the latest research on bottom trawling sustainability, compatibility with Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) and trade-offs between the environmental impact of fisheries and food self-sufficiency – while the fishing sector, represented by the European Bottom Fishing Alliance once again urged the European Commission to incorporate all relevant scientific findings into its policy-making, including the action plan, and to refrain from cherry-picking scientific data to advance its own agenda.
‘The Commission is putting the cart before the horse. It is a shame that this has to be done in the implementation phase of the action plan,’ said EBFA chair Iván López, commenting that instead of listening to science, the Commission has already decided to follow the campaigns fabricated by eNGOs determined to ban bottom trawling.
‘It’s a real pity that an open dialogue between scientists, policy makers, and stakeholders was not organised during the two years that the conception of the action plan lasted, despite our repeated requests. All that we wanted was an honest discussion on the available science and to find the best tools to protect the environment while allowing our fishers to make a living.’
During the European Parliament’s Is bottom fishing in the EU sustainable? event, professor Jan Hiddink of Bangor University’s showed that the carbon benefits of ending bottom trawling have been massively overstated by a previous paper.
It was highlighted that using exaggerated figures is a serious concern, as the EU is proposing bans on bottom trawling and may use the ‘carbon credits’ to offset other activities. If the carbon emissions are overestimated by several orders of magnitude (between 100 to 1000 times), as a result, there is a real risk increasing overall CO2 emissions while reducing global food supply.
Professor Michel Kaiser of Heriot Watt University demonstrated that, despite its impact on seabed habitats, bottom trawl and dredge fisheries have been shown to be sustainable where they are well managed, stocks are increasing. He stressed that when management measures are implemented (gear and spatial rules), it appears that bottom trawling would have a lower environmental impact than livestock or fed aquaculture, which would likely replace trawl-caught fish as a source of protein if trawling were to be banned.
Dr. Hans Polet, Scientific Director of the Flanders Research Institute for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (ILVO) presented a groundbreaking innovation, Vistools. Thanks to real-time information provided by fisherme, this technology enables precise monitoring of the specific seabed types where fishing activities occur, facilitating precision fishing. This breakthrough allows for targeted fish operations in narrow, sandy areas while avoiding sensitive areas.
‘I hope it is clear now for everybody that bottom fishing is part of the definition and future of sustainable fishing. It can have a lower environmental impact than other food production methods, and as such it cannot be replaced. We will continue investing in science and innovation to mitigate our impact,’ Iván López said.
‘Already a total of 83 bottom trawl fisheries are currently certified by the Marine Stewardship Council, which is the most widely accepted measure of overall sustainability. Banning this traditional method is not an option we can afford in the EU, particularly if we want to reduce our dependency on seafood imports – which amount to more than 70%.’
