An introduction to Sustainable Fishing

Fishing into the Future

An introduction to Sustainable Fishing

By Kirsten Milliken

Stock assessment exercise

Chris Martin

In a darkened room, fishermen are hunched over a map indicating the locations and size of available fish stocks; they are all deep in thought. At the front an official is reading results, “OK” she says. “This season plaice quota will be reduced by half because the stock assessment shows it is overfished. To protect a rare seabed habitat, there will be a closed zone here,” she says scoring off a huge area on the map, “and netting for bass is now banned.”

The fishermen begin to sweat as they quietly plan their strategies for the coming season. The official looks at her watch and counts down, “Three, two, one, go!”

There’s a sudden flurry of activity as the fishermen reach across the map to catch the remaining peas and beans on the board. When the whistle blows, the fishermen return to their starting positions to exchange their pulses for hard cash.

The Peas and Beans game is a tool used to demonstrate how commercial fishing is managed on a nationwide scale. Seventeen fishermen recently took part in this exercise at a course designed and hosted by Fishing into the Future (FITF), a charity focused on sustainability, innovation and prosperity for the UK fishing sector.

Fisherman and FITF trustee Pete Williams

“The Peas and Beans game is about understanding fisheries management,” says Pete Williams, fisherman and FITF trustee. “It’s about showing how fishermen are managed and the easiest way to do that is to give fishermen an opportunity to overfish something.”

In March 2018, FITF hosted their second residential course on sustainable fishing, An Introduction to Sustainable Fishing. This event in Devon was similar to a course run in Scotland in 2017 but focussed specifically on the inshore fleet. The course was designed to give aspiring industry leaders a well-rounded understanding of fisheries management and science and to introduce them to key people involved in those areas. All the speakers from science and management are also participants, learning from fishermen what it’s like to run a fishing business in the UK today.

“The course is about explaining science and management in an understandable and manageable way,” says Pete. “There’s everything from selling the catch, trying to get the highest value from it, the economics, managing different aspects of the fishery, right down to an open seminar on gear technology. It’s just a really good opportunity for people to understand and become confident about the industry they work in rather than be scared of it.”

Rod and line fisherman Glen Milligan

Quay Issues caught up with Glen Milligan, a rod and line fisherman from Portsmouth, who attended the course. “I’m quite new to the industry,” says Glen, “and thought it would be nice to learn a bit more about some of the bodies involved and a bit more about the industry.”

Glen moved from angling into commercial sea bass fishing two years ago. Like many fishermen, Glen has not had a great deal of opportunity to work with fisheries scientists and managers, as he explains, “Fishermen are generally quite isolated in their work. They’re quite removed from the big organisations. The only people I’d met in the industry, apart from the local guys, were guys that I met on various fishing courses, safety courses and what have you. And, most of the information I had gained was from the internet, Facebook particularly.”

The course provides a unique opportunity to bring together people from across the fisheries management spectrum and helps create networks for fishermen. “There was a really positive vibe that I wasn’t aware of”, says Glen. “I was introduced to lots of people not just fishermen, but fish producers and even some from Government bodies. There are a lot of people out there, and we all really want the same thing.”

The fishing industry is a complex regulatory environment with lots of different organisations involved. It can be very difficult for fishermen, especially newcomers, to navigate this landscape.

“Before the course, I had very little knowledge of any of the bodies involved in fisheries. There are so many bodies involved. Even when it came to getting my licence in the first place and getting the boat sorted. It can be a nightmare, especially for someone that steps in cold from the outside,” Glen added.

The course aims to show how the whole of the fisheries management system operates, how decisions are made and where science feeds into the process. Pete explains, “The course is about developing people’s understanding of the industry, how it works and how all the pieces fit together because you can’t go about changing something if you don’t understand how it works. A key objective is to foster a new, more robust approach and understanding of the fishing industry.”

FITF is a charity built and guided by fishermen, for fishermen. It was borne out of a strategic partnership between the Prince of Wales’ Charities International Sustainability Unit (ISU), Seafish, and the Gulf of Maine Research Institute (GMRI) in the USA.

The Introduction to Sustainable Fishing course, designed by FITF trustee fishermen, aims to give fishermen confidence to engage in fisheries management, as Pete explains, “It empowers people to feel that they can make changes within the industry, not just that they are destined to follow other people’s paths and routes. It’s creating innovators and leading lights within the industry. It empowers people to become more efficient, more effective, more productive and resilient managers of their own business and, hopefully, of the wider industry in the future.”

The course brings fishermen, scientists and managers together to share knowledge and understanding of their common goals. “A key part of it is networking and interacting,” says Pete. “More often than not, fishermen and scientists actually have the same opinions, they want to conserve the stocks and they want a sustainable future for the industry. The course is about having all that understanding in one place, and getting everybody to understand each other’s points of view and role within the industry.”

Scientists and managers from various organisations attended, not just to present, but also to learn. The course is also about educating scientist and managers of the realities of fishing and the difficulties of running a business. “More often than not, scientists and

managers don’t spend a lot of time on boats,” says Pete. “So equally they got a lot out of it because they saw our perspective and left with a better understanding of our job. It’s all about getting these people to actually speak to each other and understand each person’s point of view. There’s lots of benefit in fostering a more joined-up approach.”

The event in Devon was the second of its kind hosted in the UK by FITF and is modelled on the hugely successful Marine Resource Education Programme (MREP), from GMRI. Summing up the ethos behind MREP, programme leaderAlexa Dayton said, “Investment in training in the fishing industry can produce significant returns, not only in shaping the future but regaining the confidence of fishermen in the decision-making process.”

Investing in training and knowledge is vital in any industry and fishing is no exception, as Pete explains, “A lot of the people that came on the course were younger people. These are people that will be within the industry for a long period of time and having an understanding about how the industry works now equips them to be able to make changes that are better for the industry in the future.”

“These are the building blocks to a positive future, and no matter how the industry ends up being managed after Brexit, it can only be a good thing to encourage and empower people to work together”, Pete went on to say.

As the UK is on the verge of EU exit, collaboration is more important than ever in responding to challenges and tackling uncertainty. The FITF course offers fishermen an opportunity to develop skills which will enable them to engage in this important process.

To help build positive working relationships, the course is run over three days with all the attendees staying together. Pete explained this residential aspect of the course is crucial. “It’s a more hands-on, a more engaged way of getting people talking and interacting and that goes on right the way through, not just during the day. In the evening there’s time to reflect and time to talk to different groups; it gets lots of different people chatting together that might not normally get a chance to talk,” says Pete.

FITF Executive Director Jim Masters

Karrina Mather

Jim Masters, Executive Director of FITF added, “The magic of these events happens when people relax away from the pressures of the fish quay, get to know each other and get stuck into discussions for an extended period of time. Good food and accommodation help this process. “Breaking bread” together is the glue that supports positive change. The relationships that are built are lasting, productive and contribute to a new way of working: collaboration between those involved at the sharp end of fisheries.”

Building positive relationships between the fishing industry, scientists and managers is at the heart of the course.

Hazel Curtis, Seafish Chief Economist and FITF Trustee

Chief Economist at Seafish and Trustee of FITF, Hazel Curtis, explains, “Effective co-management of fisheries requires industry, scientists and decision makers that understand each other’s points of view and area of expertise. It requires mutual understanding and respect between all parties. Spending down time together, as well as learning together, helps build connections and relationships that can really make a difference to the success of commercial fishing in the UK. I had fishermen contact me after both courses with enquiries that they would not have made if they did not feel they knew me well enough.”

The course is fully funded by FITF. Although attendees might lose fishing time, there is a lot to gain by joining the course. “The course gives fishermen the knowledge, understanding and language of fisheries science and management. The aim is to enable fishermen to become effective industry leaders and engage in fisheries co-management,” Hazel went on to say.

After the course in Devon, Glen decided to establish an informal group to represent rod and line fishermen who target mainly sea bass. “It was clear to me that sea bass fishermen had very little representation,” says Glen. “I thought I’d form a group, set up an unofficial body representing what we do, so I contacted MMO and CEFAS to get some figures on the number of licenced boats and landings and the group slowly started coming together.”

The Commercial Rod and Line Sea Bass Fishermen’s Alliance is now about 20 strong and has a website and Facebook group. Although still in its infancy, the group is growing and Glen hopes that in the future it will help connect researchers with fishermen, serve as an information hub and help represent rod and line sea bass fishermen in the decision-making process.

Glen explains, “The purpose was to create a platform for commercial fishermen that target sea bass with rod and line so that we can be recognised by scientists, buyers and the government.”

More information on this group can be found here: www.seabassfishermen.co.uk

Attendees at the Introduction to Sustainable Fishing course in Devon, 2018.

Harriet Yates-Smith, Mindfully Wired Communications

Building a positive future

FITF hope to run the Introduction to Sustainable Fishing course again in autumn of 2019, and the Business of Fishing course will return to Scotland in February 2019. Jim Masters says, “We’d love a mix of fisheries and fishermen represented on the courses – but the Business of Fishing course is focused more on larger-scale fishing, and the Introduction to Sustainable Fishing course focuses on issues relevant to non-sector and inshore or smaller scale fishing.”

Glen recommends the course to others, saying, “It’s a pretty exceptional course, and it was a pleasure to be there. I would encourage people to attend for sure, go for it and go with an open mind.”

Fishermen face challenges every day, not just at sea but navigating the complex regulatory environment in which they operate. The FITF course gives anyone who participates a wider perspective allowing them to understand their own contribution to the industry and where science and politics feed into the decision making process. It helps fishermen to build networks of support from across the spectrum which is crucial in meeting the challenges that industry faces and building a positive future.