Norway’s fish stocks soar since banning discards
While we wrangle with the fishermen and the European Commission about the fish quotas that cause millions of dead and dying fish to be dumped back in the sea, Norway banned discards 30 years ago, in the late 1980s.
New research done by scientists at the University of York and published in the journal Reviews in Fisheries Science shows that the ban has been of huge value in restoring fish stocks. The researchers undertook a long-term study of data on cod, haddock, saithe and herring numbers in the North Sea, and compared them with stocks of these species in the Norwegian North-East Arctic. The results are startling. Norwegian fisheries were in crisis when the discard ban was introduced, but all the species studied are plentiful now. The researchers analysed catch rates and the age structure of the fish stocks in the Norwegian fisheries and found proof that much of this recovery was down to the discard ban. The Norwegian Arctic fisheries are now some of the most prosperous in the world.
The North Sea, conversely, is rapidly emptying of any fish at all. The EC quota policy means that up to 75 per cent of the catch currently has to be dumped after being caught. Ben Diamond, who carried out much of the research during his MSc degree in the Environment Department at York, said the discarding of fish at sea has long been excused as ‘a necessary evil to help conserve fishery resources.’ Such an idea is only tenable, of course, if the fish caught and returned are still alive when dumped, but in fact there are virtually no survivors.
The report highlighted that current North Sea stocks have the potential to increase even more rapidly than their Norwegian counterparts did. Dr Bryce Beukers-Stewart, co-author and supervisor of the study, said he had ‘no doubt that a ban on discarding in the North Sea will benefit both fish stocks and fishermen.’ He cautioned that the ban would need to be introduced ‘sensibly and with the support of all stakeholders’ and added, ‘ Closing areas with high numbers of young fish, and the use of selective fishing gear and electronic monitoring systems onboard fishing boats will be key tools in this regard.’
The TV series in which celebrity chef Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall launched a drive to secure a ban on discards has done much to alert the public. The campaign to ban discards has generated almost 700,000 signatories to date, sales of alternative fish species have soared, and the EC has proposed plans to phase in a discard ban. Nevertheless, some sections of the fishing industry still argue that the measure will threaten fragile fishing communities by forcing them to land lower value fish. Dr Beukers-Stewart is not impressed by such protests. He says, ‘Discards simply squander valuable resources. Our research demonstrates that while there may be some short-term costs, a ban on discards is essential if European fish stocks are to become sustainable in the long term.’ The Norwegian experience offers valuable evidence that this is so.
