– This year there has been a lot of sprinkling, says Olaf Iversen. He is the skipper and owner of the boat MS Spjæringen. Videos, which the fishermen have shared on Facebook, show large quantities of sprat being pumped up from a full seine down in the sea. The small and silvery herring fish are often used for anchovies. Over the course of a couple of days in January, the boat scooped up a whopping 250 tonnes of sprat in the Oslo Fjord. And according to the skipper, they could have taken on much more, but then the quota was filled. He says that in one year they have fished 1,100 tonnes of sprat in the fjord. And that in quite a few trips. – So it indicates that access is very good, says Iversen. This fishing boat is used, among other things, to fish for sprat in the Oslo Fjord, and this winter there has been a lot of fish to be had, says the skipper. Photo: MS Spjæringen A few fish does not mean healthy The fjord south of Oslo has long suffered from nitrogen pollution from agriculture and sewage. A major effort is now being put in to save it, and to bring back the cod, which is almost gone. The fishermen’s catches testify that the fjord is not dead. In addition to sprat, it has also been good with herring and mackerel, says the skipper. He says these draw into the fjord from Skagerak. – On the other hand, the local species such as pollock, cod, flounder and plaice cannot be harvested, says the fisherman. Wants a stop to fishing To say that there is a lot of sprat in the fjord would be wrong. This is the opinion of marine biologist Henning Røed, who speaks on behalf of Nettverk for a living Oslofjord. Behind the network are a number of environmental and outdoor organisations. Henning Røed in the Network for a living Oslofjord is keen to get the fish back to the Oslofjord. Photo: Bård Nafstad / news The fact that the cod in the fjord is struggling means that there should not have been fishing for sprat, he believes. – Especially in winter, the small fish are important for the cod, says marine biologist Henning Røed. – It is the only food it may have access to. Then a huge fishing boat of 28 meters comes and sweeps away the sprat that is, he says. He says that in the first decades after the war there was enough sprat to supply 40 canning factories along the Oslo Fjord. – What exists of sprats now is just a pittance compared to what it used to be, says the marine biologist. The skipper at Spjæringen believes there must be other reasons why the cod disappear than a lack of food, because there are more than enough sprat left. – The quantity that is fished is only percentages or parts per million of the stock in the fjord, he claims. The cod has become a rare sight in the Oslofjord. The species should get its food in peace for the commercial fishermen, says marine biologist Henning Røed. Photo: Marine Research Institute – The authorities listen to the fishermen It is the Directorate of Fisheries that decides how much sprat can be taken. In the zone to which the Oslofjord belongs, the quotas have been increased. The fishermen have also been granted a dispensation to fish in January. At that point, the fish is normally protected. Network for a living Oslofjord believes the fishermen get their way too easily. – It seems as if they have an open door with the fisheries authorities, that all they have to do is apply for a dispensation and they will get it. He adds: – And it is the fishermen above all, and they give blanks to everyone else, and in the whole process of saving the Oslofjord, complains Røed. Fishermen live off what they catch in the Oslo Fjord. Environmental organizations believe that commercial fishermen are allowed to fish too much. Photo: University of Oslo – Don’t overfish The Directorate of Fisheries, on the other hand, believes that there are good quantities of both sprat and herring in the fjord. Samples taken last year also showed that many of the sprats had become three to four years old, which is a sign that don’t fish too much. This is clear from a reply from the directorate to news by e-mail. And to the claim that they are giving blanks in the process of saving the Oslo Fjord, the directorate lists a number of measures they have implemented which should prove the opposite: Ban on cod fishing, ban on nets set to the bottom, protection of spawning areas for cod, established conservation areas , protected areas and contributed to the establishment of national parks in the sea.
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large numbers of sprats limped up from the Oslofjord – Greater Oslo
