Monday, 23rd November 2009
Have your say on the future of the Common Fisheries Policy
Grey seals are becoming an increasingly popular sight off the coasts of Scotland. As global warming takes its toll and our waters become warmer, it’s becoming more common for seals to be found in our rivers.
Seals have been spotted 14 miles up the River Tay near Scone Palace.
These marine mammals with their doe-eyes and large heads are adored by the public. Whether it’s following them along the coast or looking at them on greeting cards and calendars, the grey seal is regarded as an endearing species.
Today there are more than 200,000 grey seals and 60,000 common seals. By 2012 it is estimated that the grey seal population will have grown to over 210,000.
However, research compiled by the ICES, the main scientific body advising the European Commission (EC), has revealed that the grey seals take around 400,000 tonnes a year of the dwindling fish stocks in the waters around Scotland.
The impact on fish stocks is immense. Amongst other species, seals are known to feed on cod and with cod stocks in a condition of near collapse, according to scientists, this is an impact that we could do without.
The problem isn’t just in the oceans. Seals are making their way further up rivers. I recently heard from a recreational fisherman who, after spending an hour playing a salmon on the River Tay, was appalled to see a seal leap out of the water and bite his fish in half! Others have told me how the sandbanks at the estuary mouths of rivers are covered in seals at low tide, waiting for the tide to turn and the salmon to surge upstream, where they fall easy prey to these predators.
And it’s not just the fishermen who will suffer. Recreational fishing injects millions into our tourism economy.
As if seals are not a big enough challenge for our fishermen or indeed for our fish stocks, skippers are regularly bombarded with bureaucracy and red tape as they struggle to make a living in the current economic downturn.
The latest hurdle is the EC’s proposed quota cuts for next year’s catches. A 25% reduction in cod catches in much of Britain’s waters and a 13% cut in fishermen’s already limited days at sea is another disappointing announcement.
The only hope have now is that the EC’s Green Paper on the future of the Common Fisheries Policy can bring about a dramatic overhaul of the fishing industry. By devolving fisheries management out of Brussels and down to the Member States themselves, it will give our MSPs the opportunity to set up a management system involving the stakeholders.
The White Paper, to be published in 2012, is expected to overcome the problems that have beset our oceans and coastal communities. Fishermen will have a hard job surviving until then. Yet, the survival of our fishermen and our seas depends on input from everyone, from those in the fishing industry to recreational anglers and conservationists. Have your say and submit your comments online at: http://ec.europa.eu/fisheries/reform/consultation/index_en.htm.
