Lately, the debate about the stone biter has gone completely off track.
Fishmongers who will not sell stone bites in their shop.
People who hardly dare to say the word “stone bites” because fishing has become so reviled.
Big city politicians blindfolded shouting “quotas! Quotas!”.
Now I’ve had enough: The facts must be on the table!
Recently, fewer rockfish have been caught, and the prices of rockfish roe have therefore increased. This is how simple supply/demand works.
But the fact that fewer stone-biters are landed today has apparently been forgotten: Stone-biters must be an endangered species, since the fishermen do not catch more stone-biters?
Frankly. Shouldn’t we just look at the facts.
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In 1996, there were 1,231 fishing vessels in Denmark that landed more than 50 kilos of rockfish.
In 2023 there were 67.
And it’s not because the vessels have gotten bigger in the meantime.
So to make it absolutely clear; fewer vessels land fewer fish. And just because the fishermen catch fewer rockfish, you cannot say unequivocally that it is because the population is under pressure. It is simply the wrong basis to assess it.
We must have sustainable fishing
I am not interested in catching more stone-biters than the population can sustain. It is extremely important that we have sustainable fishing in the EU. Everyone agrees on that.
Therefore, we must also take the scientific reports seriously – especially if there are reports about endangered species. No doubt about it.
But we cannot act politically just because we have a report that says that there are now fewer stone bites being fished, and therefore everything must be regulated.
It’s pure madness.
When this overcautiousness causes the authorities to regulate fishing with weekly rations that are so small that the fishermen have to redo a large part of the catch, there is a great risk of falsely confirming a small stock. Because the picture will be painted on a completely wrong basis.
But there is no doubt that more data on fishing needs to be collected so that we can document how important fishing really is.
Talk to the fishermen
We have to do this together. For me, this means that you have to talk to – but also listen to – all those involved from the profession.
So we also need to talk to the fishermen, not just the scientists.
It is the fishermen who are out at sea every single day, and they are the ones who experience reality outside the calculation models of the research reports.
I like to listen to both researchers and fishermen. Because it is only when we have a picture of the whole that we can make the right decisions.
I therefore want us to get more data and a better investigation of the situation. Because it is not only the fishing for rockfish that is affected by restrictions. It can also have serious consequences for the rest of the coastal fisheries.
As long as we do not have a clear picture of the real situation, it is not responsible to make new restrictions for our fishermen.
2024-04-16 18:37:57
#Politician #regulate #stonebiters #blindly