Bycatch on Spanish bottom-trawler in the North Atlantic
In the deep sea northwest of the UK, bottom
trawlers are destroying ancient and mostly undiscovered ecosystems. They are part of an unsustainable fishing industry kept afloat
by EU taxpayer subsidies.
Antonio Vidal Pego is the boss of the Spanish family operation
You might not think that the criminal underworld smells of sea salt and fish guts, but when there are millions of euros up for grabs for Europe's fishing fleet the crooks with hooks surface.
Posted by Gemma Freeman -
17 August 2011 at 3:24pm -
1 Comment
Our seas are in peril: more
than 70 per cent of Europe's fish stocks are overfished, putting our most
popular species at risk if it continues. And the way Europe’s seas and fish are
managed allows fleets to take two-to-three times more from our oceans than
what scientists consider sustainable.
Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall launches Fish Fight Europe outside the EU Commission, Brussels
Back in January, Channel 4’s Big Fish Fight season caused quite a splash. The undoubted star of the season was Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall and his three Hugh’s Fish Fight programmes which brought the shocking facts behind the fish on our plates onto TV screens.
African Voices: Harbour and hub of Joal. Unloading of fish from pirogues.
Three leaders of West African fishing communities arrived in the UK on Sunday to embark on a week long mission: to reveal how massive European fleets are not just destroying ocean ecosystems in Africa, but also lives and communities.
Posted by Willie -
20 August 2010 at 6:35pm -
0 Comments
It's a confusing time in the north
Atlantic with an international controversy brewing over the humble
mackerel. Some are comparing
it to last century's 'cod wars', when the UK and Iceland went to battle over access to
cod fishing.
Mackerel, an exquisitely beautiful fish related to the
tunas, is relatively plentiful, occurs in big shoals, and can be caught quite 'cleanly' by seine nets or handlines. For these reasons (as well as the health
benefits of it being an oily fish), it has become a firm favourite for those
seeking a sustainable option.
Posted by jamie -
12 July 2010 at 1:55pm -
0 Comments
I was gearing up to write something on the interesting new report by the New Economics Foundation (Nef) on how the EU is becoming more reliant on fish from other parts of the world, when my attention was drawn to a piece by the BBC's Richard Black who explains far more eloquently than I ever could what 'fish dependence day' is.
Nef has compared the amount of fish caught within the EU with the amount we consume to find out when - if we only ate our own, EU-caught fish from January 1 - we would have to start using fish supplied by other countries. This year, that day was last Friday 9 July or 'fish dependence day' and, like the global ecological debt day which Nef also computes, it's getting earlier each year as we import more and more fish. Or eat more. Or both.
I'm a biologist. I have always been fascinated by the vast array of
beautiful, crazy and weird life forms on this planet. I specialized for many
years on the health of one of the most fascinating creatures - human beings. But
now I work on the health of the oceans, without which the health of the entire
planet is in dire trouble.
Like Emily, I joined
Greenpeace as volunteer, coordinating and training local activists in London, while working full-time
as a medical journal editor. I became a freelancer to have more flexibility to
be an activist, and soon found work on a variety of Greenpeace projects with
the active supporters unit, the publications team, and the toxics campaign.
Then the oceans team urgently needed a researcher, and the next thing I knew I
was writing briefings and heading out to sea on the Esperanza to try to
stop seabass pair trawlers from catching and killing dolphins.
Posted by jossc -
15 February 2008 at 3:20pm -
4 Comments
Do you like eating fish? Did you realise that around 75 per cent of the world's
fish stocks are now fished to their limit or over-fished? While you can still eat some species of fish with a clear
conscience, others are being rapidly fished close to extinction. Oxford-based band Stornoway has helpfully recorded a song
that tells you which are which. 'The Good Fish Guide' is based on the Marine Conservation Society (MCS) guidelines
to ethical fish consumption. It will shortly be released as a downloadable single via the Truck label, an environmentally
proactive record label, with all profits to the MCS.
Posted by darren -
18 May 2006 at 10:53am -
0 Comments
by Oliver Knowles, Oceans campaigner
Earlier this year I attended the Brussels Seafood Expo - the world's largest seafood and fishing exhibition. Held in 10 enormous exhibition halls over 3 days, retailers, processors, fishermen, exporters, importers and many more from around the globe come to buy, sell, talk about and eat massive quantities of seafood. And it's quite an experience.
I'm a biologist. I have always been fascinated by the vast array of
beautiful, crazy and weird life forms on this planet. I specialized for many
years on the health of one of the most fascinating creatures - human beings. But
now I work on the health of the oceans, without which the health of the entire
planet is in dire trouble.
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