Eco-Fishing: North Sea Fishermen Labor to Save Fish -- and Jobs

• Print
• E-Mail
• Feedback

So far, however, this gentler method of fishing has had a number of drawbacks. For example, stock-conservation measures reduce the number of catch days. Likewise, the fish nets on the trawlers have a mesh size of at least 120 millimeters (4.7 inches), although the EU permits the use of 100 millimeter mesh sizes for saithe-fishing. The footrope of the towed net that scrapes over the seabed is normally weighted with chains or metal balls. This makes for a bigger catch, but damages seabed fauna. For this last reason, Kutterfisch's trawlers use a much lighter footrope that runs on rubber wheels. And for all these reasons, according to Schmidt's estimate, the net brings in 30 percent fewer fish.

To make up for the losses associated with being environmentally progressive, the fishermen simply put in more effort. Manfred Rahr, the 58-year-old skipper of the Susanne, is one of Kutterfisch's most experienced captains. He skillfully scours the North Sea with his crew of five. In order to collect the annual quota, he needs to be out at sea for about 230 days a year. The net is in the water day and night, almost without interruption. Likewise, the team gets infrequent but well-deserved rest. Captains with good catch rates and a bit of luck can pull in more than €150,000 ($215,000) a year, and their crewmen earn far better salaries than land-based blue-collar workers. Were Rahr and his crew to use nets with a mesh size of 100 instead of 120 millimeters, they would make the same amount of money -- and have three free months a year.

Still, the fact that sustainable fishing means more work doesn't bother Rahr. Since fishing is also his passion, he is in favor of the stock-conserving method -- because only then will his profession have a future.

Bycatch and Discard

Still, Rahr and his crew are fishing in a difficult political environment. As they see it, the consequences of the EU-wide ban on selling bycatch -- that is, seafood species brought up in the nets that the vessel has no license to catch -- are especially absurd. Whoever brings these fish into an EU country must pay a fine. Under these circumstances, the fishermen usually throw the "unwanted" fish overboard on the high seas. Even though this is also prohibited, it is still hardly monitored.

This form of disposal, known as "discard," is considered to be one of the least desirable developments in modern fishing. The WWF estimates that, each year, millions of tons of fish are needlessly destroyed in this way across the world.

In the North Sea, cod is especially affected by this practice. Cod is classified as overfished. But since cod like to mingle with other fish, they frequently get caught by accident. And since there is no cod fishing quota, they are tossed back into the sea as waste. For 2008, the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea estimates that 21,800 tons of cod -- or almost the entire EU quota for that year -- were thrown overboard in the North Sea.

Still, practices currently used in Norway show that there is a way to resolve this problem. While the government imposes the MSC standard of using 120-millimeter mesh nets when fishing for saithe, fishermen are not fined for anything extra that goes into the net.

Schmidt, who serves as a liaison between Kutterfisch and EU authorities, has long lobbied for what he calls "the Norwegian scenario." There, he says, everything is settled much more cleanly and simply. "The EU rules for the North Sea include 240 pages of fine print," he says. "But the Norwegians use only 30 pages with larger letters that are easier to understand."

Going the Extra Mile

Kutterfisch's fleet of saithe-fishing boats has an annual bycatch quota -- and one that must not be exceeded -- of 300 tons of cod, or roughly 3 percent of its total catch. The nets that Kutterfisch uses provide the unwanted fish with good escape routes. Unlike saithe, which flee to the side, cod dive down, and the fact that the light footrope hovers over bumps allows the cod to avoid getting caught in the nets.

Schmidt estimates that Kutterfisch will hold its cod bycatch to under 2 percent of its total catch in 2009. Doing so will satisfy the German government -- but not the MSC. Companies that have the MSC eco-seal are required to show consistent improvement -- so Schmidt is making it a priority to keep reducing his fleet's bycatch.

Schmidt also commissioned the development of a half-floating ("semi-pelagic") trawl net, whose ultra-light footrope is designed to disturb the seabed as little as possible. It also has extremely large meshes in the net to provide wide avenues of escape for cod.

On August 22, Captain Rahr tested the new net for the first time in the depths off Norway. The test run only lasted less than an hour, though, because the net sensors reported strange signals.

The crew immediately hoisted the trial net on board. Having not been a match for the rocky seabed, the delicate net had been completely torn -- at an estimated damage of roughly €10,000.

Seeing the net, a MSC employee on board looked embarrassed.

The captain took the opportunity to let off a little steam. "If we do everything your way," he said, "we'll be fishing our asses off."

• Back
• 1
• | 2

• Part 1: North Sea Fishermen Labor to Save Fish -- and Jobs
• Part 2: The Price of Sustainability