EU Fisheries Commissioner Maria Damanaki’s proposal to ban the practice of discarding fish at sea, which she unveiled at a meeting in Brussels on Tuesday, is drawing a flurry of reaction from politicians, fishermen and industry players; some are applauding her proposal, while others are calling it draconian.
The proposed ban comes about a month after Damanaki pledged to put an end to the “nightmare of discards” as part the EU’s new Common Fisheries Policy (CFP), slated for reform in 2012. Discards are a consequence of the CFP’s existing quota system, which limits the amount of fish landed in an attempt to conserve stocks.
“We need to discuss a discards ban as part of the reformed CFP,” Damanaki told meeting attendees on Tuesday. “The new CFP must become a policy that has sustainability written all over it. If it does not do away with discards, then it will not deserve this name.
“But make no mistake: I am also conscious of the complexity of this challenge,” she added. “So I would like to have an open discussion with you on all these elements so that we can identify a constructive way forward. If we can find some solutions here, then we have to open a broader consultation involving all members states, stakeholders and our citizens.”
The proposed ban also comes on the heels of celebrity chef Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall’s Fish Fight campaign. The initiative, which included a TV program on Britain’s Channel 4 in January, is calling for an end to discards. So far, more than 653,000 individuals have signed a petition in support of a ban on discards, according to the Fish Fight website.
On Tuesday, Leendert den Hollander, CEO of Young’s Seafood Ltd., was among those who welcomed Damanaki’s efforts. “Discards are both a waste of resources and a barrier to long-term sustainability in fisheries,” he said. “The system must be reformed as throwing away fish is clearly wrong. We have campaigned against discards for many years and are actively involved with fishery improvement partnerships to drive change. Action must be taken now to end this wasteful practice.”
The World Wildlife Fund also praised Damanaki’s efforts. “Fishermen have to be made accountable for what they catch. A more flexible management framework allowing innovation and selectivity must be put in place. Fisheries ministers can make this happen,” said Louize Hill, head of marine and fisheries at WWF’s European Policy Office.
Added Scottish MEP Struan Stevenson, VP of the European Parliament’s fisheries committee, “It was simply not sustainable to pursue a management policy that forced Europe’s fishermen to dump up to 1 million tons of perfectly healthy fish back into the sea dead annually.”
However, Bertie Armstrong, CEO of the Scottish Fishermen’s Federation, referred to the proposed ban as “a knee-jerk response to populist TV coverage” that accurately portrayed the problem but offered no solutions. He called for “a more sensible and coherent approach” to reducing discards.
“There is the real danger that [Damanaki’s] proposals will undo all the innovative work that has been carried out in recent years by the Scottish fishing fleet in reducing discards,” he said. “This has included the use of more selective nets and closed fishing areas. We believe the solution to the problem lies in the further development of such management measures on a step-by-step basis so as to ensure the viability of the fishing fleet.”
Scottish Fisheries Secretary Richard Lochhead also expressed concern with the proposed ban. “My concern now is that the EU will repeat the mistakes of the past and put in place more ill-fitting and heavy-handed legislation that won’t solve the problem of discards but make things worse,” he said. “Scotland’s experiences show that behavior can only be changed when government and industry work in partnership, with sustainable fishing practices incentives.
Added Lochhead, “A blanket ban on discards wouldn’t be effective or enforceable in any practical way, while further limits on the time boats can spend at sea only encourages high-value stocks to be targeted and caught quickly, instead of more selective measures that protect vulnerable stocks.”
Irish Fisheries Minister Brendan Smith also weighed in on Damanaki’s efforts. “I fully share the commissioner's concern about discards,” he said. “Indeed, tackling discards is one of the priorities in Ireland’s submission on the review of the CFP and in my opinion must be a fundamental cornerstone of the new CFP.”
However, Smith cautioned that discards are a “complex issue” that a blanket ban won’t resolve. “A successful solution requires an approach, which recognizes the multi-faceted issues, the different dynamics of individual fisheries and areas and delivers real policies and change on a number of fronts,” he explained. “A blanket ban on discards in all fisheries may well be counterproductive as it would not have industry support and it would be difficult to implement and enforce. As a result, a blanket discards ban would not work.”
