from Sunday Herald, 09 February 2014
A new national marine plan for Scotland has come under fierce attack from fishermen who claim that it could destroy the sea fishing industry.
In outspoken responses to an official consultation, they have accused Scottish ministers of wanting to remove their 300-year-old right to fish, and of threatening the livelihoods of communities around the coast.
But some of their arguments have come under attack as “very misleading” by a leading academic expert. And environmental groups have called on ministers to reject “shortsighted” fishing in breach of ecological limits.
Ministers are developing a national marine plan to enable the “sustainable economic growth” of fishing, renewable and other marine industries. But their approach has been angrily rejected by the Scottish Fishermen’s Federation (SFF), in a submission posted online.
"Sea fishing, which has a tradition almost as long as the existence of the nation, deserves protection in the planning process in the same way as protection in the terrestrial planning process is granted to agriculture,” it says.
“Unfortunately the opposite is the case when it comes to be assessed against sustainable development. The additional twist of the screw is that fishermen will not receive any form of compensation for the loss of their livelihoods and the inevitable depression that that will bring to families and communities.”
SFF expresses “deep disappointment” that fishing is being given a lower priority than marine renewables, like offshore wind farms, and accuses ministers of “riding roughshod” over the fishing industry. The proposed marine plan is “unacceptable”, it says.
The SFF submission suggests that the plan threatens the historic right to fish in Scottish waters, granted in legislation passed by a former Scottish Parliament in 1705. “It is surprising that a government which campaigns to have, once again, a sovereign parliament in Scotland, should pay such little attention to history,” it says.
Another submission from the Clyde Fisherman’s Association warns that the marine renewables encouraged by the plan could damage the future of fishing. It would be ironic, it says, if tax revenues from the fishing industry were “used to fund the developments which will displace and possibly ultimately destroy that fishing industry.”
SFF’s submission was criticised by Professor Murray Roberts, director the Centre for Marine Biodiversity at Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh. “The SFF response rests on the erroneous assumption that agriculture and fishing are similar, though in fact they are fundamentally different,” he said.
“One uses the land to grow crops or farm animals, while the other relies on capturing wild animals from the marine environment. The analogy is stretched to breaking point when it's suggested that trawling the seabed is like ploughing a field.”
The comparison was “very misleading”, Roberts told the Sunday Herald, because trawling could destroy wildlife communities that took thousands of years to form. “It is vitally important that the scientific evidence underpinning future sustainable fisheries is not misrepresented.”
Environmental groups take ministers to task for not doing enough to ensure that marine wildlife will be protected. “Our seas are in poor shape so we need to heal some historical damage rather than short-sightedly growing all activities at sea without respect to environmental limits,” said Calum Duncan, from Scottish Environment Link, which bring together over 30 groups.
“Everyone wants a viable and healthy fishing industry, and introducing measures to reduce the environmental footprint of fishing activities will help the industry in the long-term.”
Alex Kinninmonth, from the Scottish Wildlife Trust, argued that the draft plan distorted the concept of sustainable development. “It fails to fully recognise that healthy seas and the protection of natural resources are a requirement for the long-term prosperity of the marine economy and coastal communities,” he said.
The SFF denied that it was attempting to derail the national marine plan, and expressed surprise at Roberts’ “hostile” comments. “Any new plan must take account of existing and traditional rights, whilst explaining properly any change of regulation or approach,” said the federation’s chief executive, Bertie Armstrong.
“This has not happened. We would prefer an equitable long-sighted national plan, giving no unduly preferential treatment to anyone.”
The Scottish government pointed out that it had received a wide range of diverse responses to its national marine plan. “The feedback we have had illustrates the difficult balancing act that has to be achieved, and that is why we will carefully consider all the consultation responses before a national marine plan is introduced,” said a spokeswoman.
This story was followed up by the Aberdeen Press and Journal.
We have a new elite flexing their muscles, get informed and beat them at their own game the hunters eventually will become the hunted. They only have (perceived) power if you dont stick together to combat such evildoings. Blood thirsty robots. Amen.
Posted by: mr i. c green | 22 February 2014 at 12:01 AM
Gamekeepers wiping out mountain hares, poisoning raptors and yes wildcats, farming = crofting rep's demanding white tailed eagle cull and now fishermen rep comparing agric ploughing with trawling the sea floor - all selfish, misinformed and all lacking even basic ecological knowledge
Posted by: Jason Alexander | 09 February 2014 at 05:31 PM
The Fishermen are aware that Agriculture is subject to the Environmental Impact regulations aren't they?... if they were also subject to the same "privilege" that would mean that the conversion of unimproved seas to "fishery production" would require the production of an EIA? Every time they went to sea.
Are they also aware how little "planning protection" now remains for agriculture?
As somebody who detests the way the marine ecosystem has been destroyed I would be happy to see the self interested exploiters brought under the same level of control.
Posted by: Circus maxima | 09 February 2014 at 12:41 PM