Visit us online for news, features and nostalgia £3.25 31 October 2019 Issue: 5487 fishingnews.co.uk PULSE BAN CHALLENGE TURN TO PAGE 2 FOR THE FULL REPORT Lynn Princess shrimping again after extensive rebuild The 16.5m Lynn Princess LN 175 went back to sea recently from The King’s Lynn shrimper King’s Lynn, after being virtually Lynn Princess is back in rebuilt by her owner Lynn Shellfish, action after being virtually reports John Worrall. rebuilt from the keel up. Lynn Princess was initially lifted out of the water alongside the company’s shellfish processing factory at King’s Lynn with a view to replacing the topside plates. An already fairly large refit increased exponentially when the decision was taken to replace all the hull plating down to the keel. As a result, the only original parts left are the keel, engine beds, most of the frames, part of the deck, the shaft tube and the rudder. The decision to rebuild a boat that has proved extremely well-suited to working the usual Wash fisheries of shrimps, mussels and cockles for nearly 30 years was taken as no new boats engines were installed in the engineroom, together above 14m are allowed to be used under a Wash with a 45kVA JCB generator. entitlement, and therefore Lynn Princess could not A highly automated shrimp handling and have been replaced by something of similar size. processing system, supplied by the Dutch company A modern-style wheelhouse and wraparound De Boer RVS of Makkum, was fitted on the main stern deck casing were fabricated, together with a deck just forward of the wheelhouse. whaleback, new fishing gantry and beams. A detailed feature on Lynn Princess and Wash Brown shrimps being delivered by conveyor from the cooker to the Below deck, new Doosan main and auxiliary shrimp fishing will be included in Fishing News soon. fishroom for boxing on Lynn Princess. MMO increases enforcement capabilities The Marine Management Organisation England’s fish stocks after Brexit. suspected illegal fishing. (MMO) has strengthened its control Protecting stocks and the wider Its team will also communicate with and enforcement capabilities to prepare marine environment will support a the fisheries authorities in EU states that for the UK becoming an independent profitable industry for current and are responsible for the activities of their coastal state by deploying more marine future generations of UK fishermen fleets, to ensure that incidents of illegal enforcement officers, regular aerial by ensuring there are thriving fish fishing are minimised and appropriately patrols and more ships at sea, to provide populations. The MMO applies the dealt with. reassurance to the UK fleet and to rules without fear or favour, regardless Principal marine officer Ronan deliver high levels of compliance. of which country a fishing vessel is McLaughlin joined the MMO earlier Teams of experienced enforcement from. this year after a career in the Irish navy personnel have undertaken extensive At the heart of its operations is focused on fisheries protection. He is planning and testing to assess the risks the Fisheries Monitoring Centre in among a group of new operational staff of illegal fishing when the UK leaves Newcastle. This is where decisions recruited to boost the MMO’s control Aerial surveillance of UK waters has been the EU – and to ensure that the MMO about deploying ships, planes and and enforcement capability in readiness stepped up in preparation for the UK becoming an can continue in its mission to protect people will be made in response to for Brexit. Continues on page 6 independent coastal state. 2 NEWS Visit us at fishingnews.co.uk and on Twitter @YourFishingNews 31 October 2019 Dutch legal challenge to EU pulse ban Dutch fishermen have mounted a legal challenge to the EU ban on electric pulse beam trawling, reports Tim Oliver Dutch agriculture minister Carola ban to be reconsidered’, and that survival of so many inshore Schouten has filed an application electric beaming was ‘a very real fishermen around the southern with the European Court of threat’ to the economic survival North Sea.” Justice (ECJ) in Luxembourg, of inshore fishermen around the Brexit Party MEP for the East of calling for the ban to be southern North Sea. England June Mummery, who was overturned. He told Fishing News: “It’s not a leading figure in the campaign She said in a letter to the often in fisheries in general and for a pulse ban, said that a reverse Dutch parliament that the EU fisheries science in particular that of the ban could spell the end for Council and European parliament something is absolutely clear-cut many UK inshore fishermen. have breached several parts of and unequivocal. In a video clip filmed in EU law. She claims the ban on “The impacts of electric pulse Ramsgate, she said that many pulse fishing is not based on fishing certainly are, and the recent areas of the seabed off the east the best available science, and CEFAS report underlines these coast had been ruined by this that it harms innovation and dreadful levels of destruction, first ‘barbaric’ fishing method, yet the technological development. observed by inshore fishermen Dutch ‘have the cheek’ to try to The EU parliament voted to in the southeast of England and overturn the ban. She said that ban the method in April. The ban transmitted to Brussels via the Low the attempt showed why Brexit is being phased in, with 42 of the Impact Fishers of Europe (LIFE) was essential for the UK fishing 84 licences being withdrawn this platform, of which NUTFA is a industry. year and the remainder by July founder member. “Only once we have reclaimed 2021. “Despite the best efforts of our waters from the Brussels “What’s required in Westminster right now is The UK has already banned representatives of the Dutch stranglehold and returned control a bloody great Dutch pulse beamer right through pulse fishing inside its 12-mile electro-fishing fleet and their MEP of our seas to parliament can we the middle of the b*****s!” limit, and is expected to extend to paint black as white, and the be sure to rid UK fisheries of the the ban to its 200-mile EEZ/ efforts of others to effectively horrific pulse fishing method,” said median line waters after Brexit. support the method whilst the MEP. of Britain’s fisheries,” said June drastic reduction in the number of UK industry leaders and resolutely sitting on the fence, “East Anglian and south Mummery. electric trawlers, before their final French green group BLOOM the ban was won on the basis of coast fishers joined with their The attempt to overturn the ban disappearance in June 2021. The slammed the attempt to factual and independent science. colleagues from across Europe was also slammed by the Paris- Dutch will remain unsuccessful.” overturn the ban. Jerry Percy, “There is absolutely no reason to fight pulse fishing. Many had based BLOOM environmental leader of NUTFA, which for the ban to be reconsidered seen first-hand the damage to group, which spearheaded the ● A new report by CEFAS on campaigned strongly for a ban in the light of such obvious and fish stocks, to gastropods, and campaign to ban electric fishing. a study of the impact of pulse on pulse beaming, said there proven damage to the seabed, and to the fish themselves, caused by BLOOM director Sabine Rosset trawling on marine ecosystems was ‘absolutely no reason for the the very real threat to the economic pulse fishing. Many small-scale said: “Despite the ongoing attacks has found that species diversity fishers know that if it is allowed to by the Dutch and their attempts to was 21-57% lower in the area continue, there would be little to no force their way through, we remain studied where electric fishing is Dutch buy-out talks future for local small-scale boats. calm and confident that electric practised, compared to a control The Dutch government is reported to be working with Dutch But with the Dutch challenging fishing will be totally and definitively area with no pulse fishing. It also fishermen and industry bodies to examine the options for a transition the pulse ban, it looks like we banned. found that there were 2.6 times fund to buy out some of the approximately 130 beamers that are going to have to fight all over “They are undoubtedly in panic fewer soles – targeted by pulse concentrate on North Sea sole and plaice as their primary target again!” because we have ruined their beamers – in the pulse fishing species, reported Fiskerforum. She said that supporters of the dreams of electric fishing, but area than in the control area. As well as the ban on pulse fishing, the beamer fleet has been hit ban have right on their side, and independent studies are beginning The study was conducted in by the massive growth in wind farms, which has placed large areas that they would fight this ‘dreadful’ to show up, and they only confirm two comparable areas off the of the North Sea out of reach for fishing. There are also fears for the fishing method, whatever the everything we have said during our south of England, one regularly future after Brexit. outcome of Brexit. campaign. fished by electric trawlers and the A further factor is that the younger generation is less inclined to see “I, for one, will be leading the “As required by the new other not. fishing as a career. There is no clear succession within many fishing fight, doing what is right for the European regulation, we are More details will follow next families, and crews are likewise becoming increasingly hard to find.