New technology can prove to be a net gain for our fishing industry

Electronic monitoring would aid sustainability, says Dr Lyndsey Dodds

Since the result of the EU referendum, there’s been much talk of the “sea of opportunity” for fisheries but little detail on what this will look like in practice. Less still on how we can do more than maintain the status quo, but instead become world leaders in sustainable fisheries management.

There’s much to praise in recent times as we’ve seen many fish stocks in our waters increase in numbers, a trend which in the Northeast Atlantic has been accompanied by decreasing fishing effort. This has happened as a result of improved management of fisheries across Europe and includes more selective gear and practices such as the use of real time closures to avoid high levels of juveniles or certain species that are under pressure. Many of these measures were driven by the Common Fisheries Policy which, while it has definitely had its issues, was much improved in its most recent reform.

Almost all commercial fish species that Scottish fleets fish are shared stocks and we’ve taken joint action with our neighbours to manage these fisheries. The challenge of how we do this sustainably whatever the future holds is one that has yet to be addressed.

WWF has identified a number of key principles that we believe need to be in place for future fisheries management, many of which are shared by others in the fishing industry, governments and retailers. These include a continued commit- ment to sound scientific advice, fishing at sustainable levels and addressing wasteful discarding. Where there is scope for debate is in the detail of how this will be delivered.

We need to find ways to harness the enthusiasm and drive for ambitious solutions. Enough of looking back, let’s look forward where one of the key areas will be to continue to find ways to manage stocks jointly with our European and UK neighbours.

We also need to find ways to deal with unselective fishing that results in discarding – the practice of throwing away unwanted fish at sea – something that no-one wants to see happen from the fishermen to the consumer buying fish. Currently Europe’s fishing industry is committed to the objective but struggling to deliver it. There are many reasons for discarding, including market forces and poor quota management as well as a lack of selective practices.

Whatever happens in the future we need to see a commitment to end discarding in a way that seeks to deliver benefits to all. By having fully documented fisheries using remote electronic monitoring with cameras and sensors we could move towards a truly accountable approach that gives confidence to retailers, consumers and regulators and ensures the sustainability of our fish stocks. Using such a system the levels of fish that can be removed sustainably are agreed and when those fish are removed from the sea it is recorded – whatever the end point for the fish; whether it is

discarded, eaten, turned into fish meal – which means we have a far more accurate picture of the status of key fish species. A proportion of the data can then be analysed to provide a far more cost-effective, safe and accurate picture of the fishery than can be achieved through more traditional methods.

There are additional benefits including that of data collection – fishermen can use it as evidence for what is happening at sea, for example, if the abundance of species seems higher than expected and scientists can use it to study a whole range of different aspects of fisheries science. Camera footage can also be used to positively market fish and demonstrate best practice.

For the last five years around 20 to 30 fishing boats in Scotland have been trialling full documentation with cameras. For these trials there was an incentive of additional quota for participating fishing boats. Now the incentive has gone the number of boats using this technology is dropping off. We believe the development of new fisheries legislation is the moment to introduce this sort of technology as a mandatory component of fisheries management and to make it a condition of foreign vessels operating in our waters.

We wouldn’t be alone. A number of fisheries around the world have gone down this route, including most recently the New Zealand government where it made the commitment to electronic monitoring with cameras across its fleet. Some of the key reasons cited include reduction of waste, improved information to support management and more responsive decision-making but also the anticipated economic benefits from marketing a fully tracked, sustainable product that builds consumer confidence.

Could this be the future for our fishing fleets? Dr Lyndsey Dodds, Head of Marine Policy, WWF.