A report developed by a certifying firm points out that the sole and plaice electric pulse trawl fisheries have healthy target stocks that are effectively managed but they fall short in relation to its ecosystem impact.
This assessment was presented by Acoura Marine in the MSC public comment draft report (PCDR), which the Cooperative Fisheries Organisation of the Netherlands (CVO) has decided to share it with all stakeholders in order to improve understanding of electric pulse fishing through open discussion and clear, independently evaluated facts.
In order to obtain MSC certification, every principle must score, on average, a minimum of 80 points out of 100. The draft report indicates that the fishery obtained an average score of 77 points for causing ecosystem impact and therefore, the fishery is not recommended for certification.
In addition to limitations in understanding the impacts of the pulse fishery on ecosystems, the report highlights challenges in the policy framework of the European Common Fisheries Policy (CFP), and on control and enforcement. The CVO and the Dutch government are already working to address these issues.
Acoura Marine observed that the physical impacts of pulse fishing on the seabed are lower than those of conventional beam trawl fishing.
Their draft report also highlights that the pulse fishery consumes less fuel. However, the draft assessment concludes that there is currently insufficient knowledge of the impacts of electric pulses on seabed ecosystems to state with certainty that pulse fishing does not have any significant impacts.
The report notes that, while the evidence available to date does not indicate significant impacts, additional research, and a longer time series of data, are deemed necessary. These challenges are related to the fact that pulse fishing is a new technique and has been operational only for a short time.
In this regard, the CVO says that, in policy development, new fishery methods are being closely scrutinized due to increased societal attention. They claim this makes the introduction of a new gear now more challenging than several decades ago.
The knowledge gaps highlighted in the assessment are already being addressed by new research and catch records. For example, a four-year research programme into the pulse fishery by Wageningen Marine Research (formerly known as IMARES) started in early 2016 and is studying the effects of electric pulses on a wide group of organisms, on the functioning of the seabed ecosystem in the long and short term, on fishery stocks, and on the bycatch.
The results of this research will be brought together into an umbrella assessment of the impact of pulse fishery on the North Sea ecosystem as a whole. The results are expected to be published in 2019. At the same time, an increasingly detailed picture of the fishery distribution, landings and interactions with Endangered, Threatened or Protected (ETP) species is being built up.
The MSC assessment points to the need to adopt a clear enforcement protocol, which had not been completed at the time of the assessment. The fishery’s management authorities have since codified new requirements to address this issue.
These requirements have been agreed by the Ministry, Control and Enforcement agency, industry and suppliers and will be implemented as soon as possible. In addition, they decided to obtain an independent NEN-certification for pulse, securing the future requirements with which all pulse vessels (modules and conductors) must comply.
This allows the Control & Enforcement agency to verify whether the voltages used during fishing have been correctly implemented, and that they are applied in accordance with the most recent scientific insights.
The statutory status of all electric fishing in the CFP is yet to be adopted on a permanent basis. On the basis of the existing research, the European Commission has proposed to the Council and the European Parliament that this fishing method should be permitted formally and definitively. A final decision, involving all relevant EU institutions, is still to be made. Clarity on the status in the CFP will provide certainty for the fishermen, but is also required for a positive result in an MSC assessment.
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