Ostend skipper fears for small trawlers after Greenpeace drops granite boulders on North Sea floor
Greenpeace lowered stones weighing up to two tonnes into a protected area off the English coast last weekend to block bottom trawling; fishermen and the British authorities have responded critically.
Greenpeace dumped granite boulders in the southern North Sea off England's east coast from its ship Arctic Sunrise last weekend. According to the organisation, they are spread over 116 square kilometres in a protected area where trawling is still permitted, VRT NWS reported. The trade website Visserij.nl writes that the boulders weigh up to two tonnes and that the UK's Marine Management Organisation (MMO) has published nine positions, based on coordinates Greenpeace gave to the coastguard.
Johan Hennaert, a 56-year-old vessel owner from Ostend who has fished for more than forty years with his two sons, told VRT NWS the action was irresponsible. He said the area is one of the most important fishing grounds for Belgian fishermen. If a net hauls up a stone of around two tonnes, a smaller vessel can capsize, especially in four to five metre swells. He says six trawlers have overturned in the zone over the past twenty years after snagging something heavy. In an open letter on Facebook he invited Greenpeace to join a fishing trip.
Ruth-Marie Henckes of Greenpeace Belgium told VRT NWS that the organisation had received the letter and does not want to make life hard for fishermen, but that beam trawling harms harbour porpoises, which often get caught in nets. The MMO called the action disappointing and is investigating whether Greenpeace broke the law, since dumping material on the seabed requires a licence, Visserij.nl reports. The UK's National Federation of Fishermen's Organisations also warned of danger to crews.