Low Impact Fisheries in the Baltic Sea – modified and alternative fishing techniques Gustaf Almqvist The Fisheries Secretariat (FISH )

Low Impact Fisheries in the Baltic Sea– modified and alternative fishing techniques

Gustaf Almqvist The Fisheries Secretariat (FISH)

LIF/LIFE (Low Impact Fuel-Efficient)

aim to mitigateDirect effects of fishing: Effects of target species (selectivity)Bycatch, Habitat impacts, Vulnerable speciesIndirect effects of fishing: Carbon emissions – Fuel efficiency

Seas At Risk 2009: “Moving towards Low Impact Fisheries In Europe” WWF 2007: “Towards Low Impact Fisheries” FAO 2012: “Barriers to achieving low-impact fuel-efficient fishing” Suuronen et al 2012. ”Low impact and fuel efficient fishing—looking beyond the horizon” Fisheries Research 119– 120: 135– 146Baltic conditions:

Opportunity for LIF/LIFE

CFP: Regionalisation (co-management)Funds available for gear changesMSY Discard ban: selectivity

Baltic pilot area, LIFGood climate for co-operation

Limited no. of countries

All EU MS, besides Russia (7% tot. catches)

Not significant inequality among Baltic MS

International Baltic Sea Fishery Commission (IBSFC)BALTFISH

Example of co-management

Favourable ecological conditionsLow biodiversityClean fisheries

Recovering fish stocks

HOWEVER

Susceptible to overfishing

5 of 7 stocks fished above FMSY levels

Unbalanced status of Baltic fish species

Seals and cormorants

Exposed to other anthropogenic stresses PollutionNutrition load - Eutrophication

Constitute > 80 %

of Baltic fish biomass

& >90% of landings

Environmetal impact

reduced →

LIF(E) can be achieved e.g. by shifting to new techniques or by modifying existing techniques.

Active gears:Bottom trawls, Danish seines, pelagic trawls

Purse seine nets,

Passive gears:Gill nets, trap nets, longlines, pots

Jigging machines

Illustration from FAO and SEAFDEC, in Suuronen et al. 2012

Bottom trawls- Otter trawlscod, flatfish

Effects of target species (selectivity)

Bacoma

T90

Illustration by Niels Knudsen, Fiskeri- og Søfartsmuseet, Esbjerg from Korsgaard et al. (2007).

Stern trawlerSide trawler Ramp trawlervessel drawings are from Tschernij & Suuronen (2002)

Illustration from FAO and SEAFDEC, in Suuronen et al. 2012

Bottom trawls- Otter trawlscod, flatfish

HabitatImpacts on sea floor and benthic species

not well studied in the Baltic SeaResuspension of contaminants

Suspended materials – effects on pelagic fish eggs (e.g. cod, flatfish)?

Vulnerable species -

BycatchDiscard: Undersized cod 8%

Flatfish (plaice, Baltic flounder)Salmon

Modified illustration by Niels Knudsen, Fiskeri- og Søfartsmuseet, Esbjerg from Korsgaard et al. (2007).

Danish seinesflatfish, cod – only marginally used today

Effects of target species (selectivity)Mixed information:

Knowledge and experience of fishermenFor herding species – poor selection


Knowledge and experience of fishermen

Habitat Resuspension of sediment and contaminants

Vulnerable species

-

Scottish seining – fly-shootingMore catch/fuel efficient

Fuel efficient

Illustration by Niels Knudsen, Fiskeri- og Søfartsmuseet, Esbjerg, from Korsgaard et al. (2007).

Pelagic/midwater trawlssprat & herring

Effects of target species (selectivity)High mortality of clupeids that escape

Unaccounted discard

Scattering school of pelagic species

BycatchMixed catches of sprat & herringsalmon, juvenile cod

Habitat -

Vulnerable species -

Fuel efficient volume/ semi efficient value


Purse seine netsshoaling pelagic speciesclupeids – usage in the Baltic Sea?

Effects of target species (selectivity)Selective but depend on

knowledge and experience of fishermenLarge catches; ecological consequences

BycatchKnowledge and experience of fishermen

Slipping (mortality up to almost 30%, Tenningen et al. 2012)

Habitat Bottom contact, ”purse lines” (wire)

Vulnerable species

harbour porpoises (can be mitigated)

Fuel efficient

Gill nets cod, flatfish, salmon/seatrout & coastal sp.


size range selectivetrammel nets less selective

larger meshes than minimum allowedunaccounted discard?

Bycatch non-commercial fish species


Gill nets cod, flatfish, salmon/seatrout and coastal species




Bycatch Undersized cod 7%

non-commercial fish species


Habitat >12 m: 13.4 km (nets combined); <12 m: 9.9 km

Effects on bottom structure during retrieval of the gear Ghostnets

Vulnerable speciesBirds, harbour porpoises

(drift net ban 2008)

Map showing cumulative numbers of the total annual bird bycatch in the Baltic Sea. From Žydelis et al., 2009.

Steller’s eider caught in a net. Photo: .Markus Vetemaa, in LIFE 05 NAT/LV/000100

Gill nets cod, flatfish, salmon/seatrout and coastal species





non-commercial fish species


Habitat >12 m: 13.4 km; <12 m: 9.9 km

Effects on bottom structure during retrieval of the gear Ghostnets

Vulnerable speciesharbour porpoises, birds

drift net ban 2008

Fuel consumption - varies

Longlines – demersal & pelagiccod (flatfish), salmon/seatrout


semi-selective –hook size

BycatchUndersized cod 12%

(non-commercial species)

Illustration from FAO and SEAFDEC, in Suuronen et al. 2012Habitat

Little effects

Vulnerable species(birds?)Fuel consumption - varies

TrapnetsClupeids, salmonids, (cod)


Depends on mesh sizeEscape panels

BycatchNon target fish species

HabitatLittle effects

Vulnerable species-

modified illustrations from LIFE 05 NAT/LV/000100

Fuel consumption - varies

Seal safe pontoon trap netClupeids, salomonids

Illustration Finnish Game and Fisheries Research Institute., in Suuronen et al. 2012

Cod potscod


selective

Bycatch-

Habitat-

Vulnerable species-

illustration from Furevik et al. 2008

Fuel consumption - ?

Jigging machinescod


selective

Bycatch-

Habitat-

Vulnerable species-

Illustration from: http://www.montereyfish.com/pages/methods/jigging.html

Fuel consumption ?

Bottom trawls & Danish seines, more focus on:

•Selection not only in posterior part of trawl

•Less bottom contact

•Conduct studies on effects on sea floorand ecosystem

•Escapement panels/grids in the Baltic Sea- examples from other areas

Technical improvements

The CRISP trawl, currently under development in Norway (Valdemarsen et al. 2011).

Less rigid and more flexible approach to gear tests and development efforts

Pelagic trawls, more focus on:

•Measures to reduce bycatch of salmon, cod

•Scattering effects on target species and predatory fish (also Purse seines)

Sweden, smaller purse seine nets (<6 m) (350 m in length and 28 m in depth)

0.02 l/kg catchlow bycatch

rope instead of wire

Gill nets, more focus on:

•Measures to reduce bycatch birds

•Unaccounted discard?

Longlines, more focus on:

•Circle hooks mandatory

•Mitigate problems with Saduria entomon eating the bait

•Improve efficiency by looking at baits (Cod pots)

CodBottom trawl

Danish seine

Cod pot

DemersalLongline

Gillnets

Jigging machin

e

Target species effects,

selectivity

+

Habitat

Bycatch/discard

Vulnerable sp

Fuel cons ? ? ?

Efficiency CPUE ? ?

?

Quality

Midwater

trawlsPurse seine

Trap nets

Gillnets


selectivity

Habitat

Bycatch/discard

Vulnerable sp

Fuel cons

Efficiency CPUE

Quality

Flatfish Bottom trawlsDanish seine

Longline

Gillnets


selectivity

Habitat

Bycatch/discard

Vulnerable sp

Fuel cons ?

Efficiency CPUE !

Quality

Salmonids Gillnet Trapnet Pontoon trap Pelagic longline


selectivity

Habitat Bycatch/discard

Vulnerable sp

Fuel cons

Efficiency CPUE

Quality

Other measures

o Improved zonation of the Baltic Sea and adjusted fishing, •e.g. Environmentally Sound Fisheries Management in

Marine Protected Areas (EMPAS)•Seasonal closures / real time closures (moving on practices)•Close coastal waters for trawlers

o Environmental-impact assessment Allocate more fishing opportunities towards LIF(E) (25%)

Overlap of hotspot areas for undersized cod and areas commercially trawled for the first two quarters (a) and the last two quarters (b) of the year unpublished data from the LOT 1 project “Collaboration between the scientific community and the fishing sector to minimize discards in the Baltic cod fisheries”

Dziękuję bardzo

Documents referred to in the presentation

FAO (2012). The State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture. FAO, Rome, 2012.Korsgaard, K., Olrik, M. R. and P. Mandrup (2007). Fiskerilære, 2.udg., 2007. ISBN

87-90749-10-3.Seas At Risk (2009). Moving towards Low Impact Fisheries in Europe: Policy Hurdles

& Action. Report by Dr J. Gascoigne and E. Willsteed.Suuronen, P., Chopin, F., Glass, C., Løkkeborg, S., Matsushita, Y., Queirolo, D. and

Rihan, D. 2012. Low impact and fuel efficient fishing—looking beyond the horizon.Fisheries Research, 119–120: 135–146.

Tenningen, M., Vold, A., and Olsen, R.E. 2012. The response of herring to high crowding densities in purse-seines: survival and stress reaction. ICES Journal of Marine Science 69(8): 1523–1531.

Tschernij V, Suuronen P (2002) Improving trawl selectivity in the Baltic. Nordic Council of Ministers, TemaNord 2002, p 512

Valdemarsen, J.W., Øvredal, J.T. and Åsen, A., 2011. Ny semipelagisk trålkonstruksjon (CRIPS-trålen). Innledende forsøk i august-september 2011 om bord i M/S “Fangst”. Rapport fra Havforskningen Bergen, Norway, Institute of Marine Research. nr. 18: 17. in Norwegian

Vetemaa, M. and L. Ložys. 2009. Estonian Marine Institute, University of Tartu LIFE Nature project “Marine Protected Areas in the Eastern Baltic Sea”, Reference number: LIFE 05 NAT/LV/000100.

WWF (2007). Towards Low Impact Fisheries –WWF Report on how to mitigate ecosystem effects of fishing by Katja Broeg.

Žydelis R., Bellebaum, J., Österblom, H., Vetemaa, M., Schirmeister, B., Stipniece, A., Dagys, M., van Eerden, M. and S. Garthe. 2009. By-catch in gillnets fisheries –

An overlooked threat to waterbird populations. Biological Conservation 142: 1269–1281