The matter in summary According to a report from the Institute of Marine Research, there is extensive bottom trawling in Raet National Park. Scientists believe that it is not possible to protect marine life with the current amount of trawling. Local fishermen fear for their livelihood if a ban on fishing is introduced in the national park. The Norwegian Nature Conservation Association has long fought to stop bottom trawling in the national parks along the Skagerrak and demands that the authorities tighten up and ban bottom trawling in the Raet. The Ministry of Climate and Environment, which is responsible for Raet National Park, says they will assess the report and possibly make adjustments, but they must also take into account the fishermen in the area. The summary is made by an AI service from OpenAI. The content is quality assured by news’s journalists before publication. – This is the tracking of various fishing trawlers in the period from 2019 until now. Here we see that there has been extensive bottom trawling. Researcher Alf Ring Kleiven at the Institute of Marine Research looks at a map showing the extent of trawling in the protected area off the Sørland coast. 98 percent of Raet National Park is under water. Marine researcher, Alf Ring Kleiven shows the map with the tracking of trawlers inside the national park. Photo: Espen Bierud / news The trawling is described in a recent report from the Norwegian Institute of Marine Research. – There is actually as much fishing here as outside the area, says Kleiven. The correct medicine is to severely limit fishing, is the conclusion from the marine scientists. – It is not possible to properly protect life in the sea with what is happening here, says Alf Ring Kleiven. Fears for livelihood In Grimstad, fisherman Dagfinn Pettersen (55) unloads the night’s catch at the reception in Grimstad. Together with their son, Stig (28), they have had good trawl catches in the last two days. – We are very satisfied. We have caught a lot of prawns and large, fine cod as by-catch. Much of their fishing takes place inside Raet National Park. – It is very important for us to be able to trawl here in these nearby areas. Should we lose this, there is no point in going any further, says Pettersen. However, the Norwegian Institute of Marine Research’s report is clear: The extent of recreational and professional fishing in the area is not compatible with the protection that should be in a national park. Alf Ring Kleiven believes that it is not possible to operate this type of trawling without damaging the bottom. Calling it fraud protection Truls Gulowsen is head of the Nature Conservation Association. He is not surprised when he sees the extent of fishing in the area. The head of the Nature Conservation Association, Truls Gulowsen, is not surprised when he sees the maps of fishing in Raet National Park. He refers to it as fraud protection, and demands that the authorities tighten up. Photo: Richard Aune / news – The report confirms that Raet National Park is a typical “paper park”, or “cheat protection”. The Norwegian Nature Conservation Union has long fought to stop bottom trawling in the four national parks along the Skagerrak. They have also collected over 5,000 signatures, which were presented to the Minister of Fisheries in the autumn. Gulowsen demands that the authorities tighten up and ban bottom trawling and other forms of harmful activity in Raet. – It is a conservation area that looks good on paper. But as it is now, it has no effect on the ecosystem it is supposed to protect. Must take the fishermen into account The Ministry of Climate and the Environment is responsible for Raet National Park. State Secretary, Kjersti Bjørnstad says they will now familiarize themselves with the report. – If it turns out that the rules for a protected area are not good enough, there may be a need to make some adjustments. This is something we continuously monitor. She says the nature in Raet National Park should basically be protected against harmful interventions and activities. It is therefore not correct to call this fraud protection, she believes: – Examples of activities that are prohibited include aquaculture, anchoring of ships, sea wind, development of ports, breakwaters, etc., in addition to the fact that various forms of fishing are regulated in different zones of the national park. Bjørnstad says they also have to take into account the fishermen in the area. – In many cases, there is nothing to prevent fishing with gear that does not damage the bottom. – Extensive fishing Raet is the largest of four such conservation areas along the Skagerrak coast. These have the strongest nature protection we have in this country. Marine researcher, Alf Ring Kleiven looks out over the sea areas off Flødevigen, which is also part of the Raet National Park. Photo: Espen Bierud / news But in practice this only applies over water. In comparison, boat owners who drilled a few mooring holes in rocky shores received large fines. Trawling along the seabed for years, on the other hand, is perfectly legal. And the rules for recreational fishing are among the most liberal in the world, says researcher Alf Ring Kleiven. He wants measures to be put in place. – We will introduce zones with various restrictions. Including ban on fishing. It is the only way to take care of the fish stocks and nature in general, he says. Major consequences Father and son Pettersen are fishermen, the same applies to grandfather, Odd Kvale Pettersen. Youngest man, Stig, hopes he can continue the proud profession. But then they cannot tolerate a fishing ban, he says. – I think it is scary when they propose a ban. It is easy to introduce, but has major consequences for us. The Pettersen family have been fishermen for many generations. Youngest man, Stig, hopes he can still make a living from trawling. Photo: Erik Wiig Andersen / news The 28-year-old says the consequences of this are going further to trawl. It will be more expensive and you will be more exposed to bad weather. Dagfinn believes it is too easy to blame the few local fishermen for what is happening in the sea. He says they trawl in limited areas and do so very gently. – We get good catches here and do not believe the descriptions the researchers give. It’s easy to blame us. Seals, cormorants and pollution are worse to deal with. Therefore, the focus is rather on the local fishermen. Published 23.10.2024, at 05.54
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Widespread bottom trawling in Raet National Park – fishermen fear ban – news Sørlandet – Local news, TV and radio
