2023-04-22 03:00:59
Is fishing compatible with ecological imperatives? The recent crisis, which has seen fishermen and environmental associations clash head-on, may cast doubt on this… However, sustainable fishing that is less dependent on diesel is possible and even essential, according to players in the sector.
Demonstrations in front of the home of the president of Sea Shepherd, rocket fire at the French Biodiversity Office (OFB) in Brest, set on fire the next day… The latest movement of fishermen gave the impression of irreconcilable positions between fishermen and environmental defenders, whether activists or state agents.
“On a daily basis, things generally go well,” said Sylvain Michel, CGT staff representative at the OFB’s marine center in Brest.
According to him, “there is no doubt regarding the fact that we can reconcile the preservation of ecosystems and fishing: it is even essential”. “It’s not always easy discussions, sometimes it’s even quite tense negotiations but we manage to dialogue and build actions together”, he develops.
“If we want there to be fishermen, we need a protected ecosystem. It is the protection of the oceans that will ensure that there will still be fishing. And fishermen have their place there”, approves Charles Braine , president of Pleine Mer.
This association, created to weave “bridges” between fishermen and organizations for the defense of the environment, publishes in particular a map of short circuits to promote local fishing.
In the midst of a fishing crisis, Pleine Mer criticized the project to ban, in 2030, trawling and other “towed gear” in marine protected areas (MPAs), which would be “a tragedy for small-scale fishing and a boon for industrial fishing lobbies”.
“We must not close everything at once but identify the most important areas to protect”, underlines Mr. Braine, regretting MPAs without real protection, created “to make numbers”.
– “Massively abandon the trawl” –
Ultimately, these criticisms do not prevent us from questioning the future of the trawl, a devastating fishing technique for the seabed and very fuel-intensive.
“A kilo of fish caught by trawl consumes one to two liters of diesel and emits up to 6 or 8 kilos of CO2 equivalent, four to ten times more than net and pot fishing”, develops Didier Gascuel, professor in marine ecology at the Agro Institute in “La pêchécologie” (Editions Quae, January 2023).
“There is no other solution to decarbonize the fleet than to abandon the trawl massively”, he explains to AFP, because the technologies of substitution to the diesel engine (electricity, hydrogen, etc.) “are not ready” and will not be in the medium term.
The researcher suggests experimenting with diving fishing for scallops in the bay of Saint-Brieuc or fishing for langoustine with pots, “like in Iceland”, in certain areas of the large mudflat, south of the Brittany.
“The energy crisis is a very good opportunity to incite the transition”, supports Mr. Braine. Especially since “soft fishing methods produce better quality fish. The fish is less damaged, it is better valued”.
With the rise in diesel prices, “detrawling is a process already underway”, remarks Mr. Gascuel. “It is urgent to organize it rather than suffer it”.
Increasing the mesh sizes of the nets would also make it possible to increase the size and therefore the biomass of fish while keeping catch levels high, suggests Mr. Gascuel, who pleads for granting more quotas to fishermen who would play the game. not won in advance”, he admits.
However, some professionals already practice this “really sustainable small-scale fishing”, such as Breandán O’Geallabhain, 35, who lives “very decently” fishing with a trolling line, off Lanildut (Finistère).
With his “very small” 7-meter boat, he consumes three times less diesel per kilo of fish caught. “So that I can earn my living with few volumes,” he smiles.
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