Shuttin oot da fysheen industry
De’r no mony fokk idda fysheen industry at wid object til fyshin bein banned whaar de’r bruckly habitats at’s endeingered bi fysheen. Waar beds is a güd example; d’ir aafil impoartant idda sequestration o carbon dioxide and dey ir probably as vital as da Amazon rainforest is til wir global ecosystem. D’ir güd traeps fir sinderin wyes o fysheen at canna wirk wi een anidder, laek towein nets or dregs an settin creels. Aroond Europe de’r a lok o fysh nursery plaesses, wi muckle gadderies o peerie fysh, at’s stengeled til fyshin. So stengeled plaesses can mak sense fae time ti’ time. But tae shut fysheen oot o a whaanious area o sea so as tae better manage fysheen (which is whit a lok o NGOs wants tae dø) nidder haes vynd or logic.
Hit’s no logical becis a fyshery døsna need whaanious stengeled areas o sea tae be wrocht richt. Tae be managed sustainably, fyshers mosst onnly tak whit a stock can safely yield. Dis can be regulated bi catch leemits, øswally on a boat-bi-boat basis. Nets need tae hae muckle masks so nae peerie fysh is catched, an by-catches o fysh you dunna want is eliminated. Dis is noo possible trowe better gair design an idder new fangled techniques. Aa dis haes tae be rigorously enforced. Dis is no some idealistic draem; hit’s perfectly possible tae achieve and is noo happenin. Hit micht takk some time, but da gret increase o MSC-certified fysheries ower da past twa decades is shaan whit is possible. Dis is a gret achievement and is a templaet fir mair progress. So da belief at bannin fysheen fae a whaanious area will somewye or idder mak da management o fysheries mair sustainable is braaly irrational. Nidder is it practical, fur een o da unintended consequences o stengeled areas will be tae mak boats fysh idder areas. Ahint dis sonsie veneer o simplicity is a astonishin level o naivety.
Sae far as Scotland is consairned, de’r maebbi hidden motivations firbye. I recently spak til a young fysher on da wast cosst a Scotland. In her twinties, shø is pairt o da new gineration at’s passionate aboot fysheries conservation. As far as shø’s consairned, de’r nae alternative til fyshin sustainably an lookin efter da environment. Shø is equally passionate aboot da wast cosst community shø wis born intil. Wirried aboot da loss o young fokk an believin at fyshin an fysh fairmin offers da best wirkeen prospects fir da plaess, shø maed up her mind no tae ging til university but tae ging til da creels insteid. Some o her freends tøk da sam rodd, gittin jobs on da local fysh fairm. Hit’s dis gadderie o young fokk, shø expleins, at will hoopfilly be able tae bring up a faimily an keep dir oot-o-da-wye wast Highland plaess livin. Prood o her industry, shø can see a veeve future fir sustainable seafood but shø is mair an mair exasperated bi weel-tae-dø men fae sooth wantin tae ban fyshin an fysh fairmin idda sea lochs. Dey claem at dir proposed stengeled areas is needit tae preserve marine ecology, but shø winders if da real raison is tae keep da plaess til demsels. Dey want a unimpeded view when dey mak dir occasional veesits nort. Da less activity apø da watter da better; in fact, da less fokk aroond da better. Dey want a wilderness escaep fae da ceety, an a gadderie o fyshers and fysh fairmers ruins dat.
Sic is da pooer an wealt o da NGO funders at a lok o fyshers noo feels beleaguered an ignored. Hit’s almosst as if da fysheen industry is seen as a inconvenient vexation staandin firnenst da gaet o a marine paradise. Fysheen voices at meeteens tae speak aboot stengeled areas is affen jarrin, brakkin up da dollar-fuelled consensus aboot stengeled areas at’s recently come aboot.
Dis growein divergence atween da NGO community an da fysheen industry wis brocht haem ti’ me at a event I güd til twartree year fae syne tae spaek aboot da future o da oceans. Hit wis organised bi da Ditchley Foundation, a braaly impoartant institution, established tae foster understandeen an wirkeen tagidder atween da USA and da UK. Takkin tagidder deceesion-makkers an experts fae diverse areas o public policy, hit hoops tae fin consensus on complex issues trowe spaekeen. So dir model is mair as simply haein a meeteen. Insteid, da fokk bides tagidder in tree days, øswaly ower da helly idda extraordinary setteen o Ditchley Park.
Closs by Oxford, Ditchley is a muckle an boannie hoose set in its ain gründs o 350 acre. Biggit in 1722 bi da Earl of Lichfield, baith aristocrats an royalty is bidden dere ower da centuries. Hit was even Winston Churchill’s secret helly retreat durin da Siccind Wirld War whin his offeecial muckle hoose, Chequers, wis believed tae be ower exposed til da risk o a German air attack. Central til da Ditchley model is at aabody bides and gadders tagidder ower da tree days. Hit’s a concept at wirks aafil weel, wi plenty o opportunities tae netwirk ootside da formal spaekeen sessions. Da relaxed wye o da event, tagidder with da expertise o dem bidin, maks sure at de’r a high standard o spaekeen an tüllie. I fairly enjoyed da experience an met some braaly interestin fokk, baith fae America an fae da UK.
Da invited experts, at numbered mair as 40, wis maed up o government advisors, members fae think-tanks, academics an representatives fae various NGOs. De wir twartree very well-kent and wealty fokk dere, even some o dem at wis set up dir ain foondations. Aa da guests wis güd at whit dey did, an I wis plaised tae see sae mony weemen as men sittin aroond da table. I wis presumably been aksed becis I wis bøn døin some wark on fysheries sustainability fir a conservation charity. But de wir nae fyshers, nae skippers an naebody fae ony o da industry associations, idder fae America or da UK. We wir aboot tae start spaekin aboot fysheries management an de wirna a anterin body idda room at maed dir liveen fae da sea.
Whin I aksed whit wye dis wis da caess, de wir ineetially a forsmo at whit I wis aksen and dan some muted embarrisment. Da fyshin industry wisna bøn deliberately keepit oot; hit wis simply bøn firyatten aboot. Hit wis as if da fokk at catch da fysh – and haes maist tae loss if stocks is no fyshed idda richt wye – wis no tae be seen. Dis wis a metaphor at beid wi me fir da rest o da event. Hit wis datn a waestit opportunity. Da discussion on fysheries wisna whit hit micht a bøn wi a key stakehowlder – da main stakehowlder, mony wid traep, no dere. Tae spaek aboot da future o fysheries ithoot fyshers is as muckle o a forsmo as haein a meeteen o white fokk tae spaek aboot racism.
Dis article is a excerpt fae The Salt Roads translatit intil Shaetlan.
