GREENPEACE VICTORY ON INDUSTRIAL FISHERIES -- but North Sea crisis unresolved

Bergen, Norway 14 March 1997

On the final day of the Intermediate Ministers Meeting (IMM), Denmark as announced a major breakthrough in the North Sea crisis with a suspension in industrial fishing in sensitive areas.

Speaking at the Bergen fisheries conference, Svend Auken, Danish Environment Minister, said his country would suspend industrial fishing in areas sensitive to wildlife. Greenpeace, which has run a sustained campaign against industrial fishing, congratulated the Danes on their decision.

What constitutes a sensitive area has yet to be defined and Greenpeace is calling on Denmark to suspend industrial fishing in the Scottish Wee Bankie this year. The Joint Nature Conservation Committee has proposed an industrial fishing ban in the area on the grounds of its sensitivity.

Greenpeace campaigner Malcolm MacGarvin said, "This is very good news for the North Sea. It stops one of the most destructive fishing practices and will make an important difference to areas such as the Wee Bankie."

In other respects, however, the Ministers Meeting failed to address the North Sea overfishing crisis. No steps were taken to ensure that cod stocks recover, or to deal with spawning stocks or the suspension of practices that lead to discarding. Cod in the North Sea is facing imminent collapse. Just a few years ago, cod disappeared off the Canadian coast, with the loss of thousands of jobs in the fishing industry. "The agreed text on these issues is so vague as to mean anything or nothing", said Malcolm MacGarvin. "On past performance, they probably mean nothing." While Ministers have agreed to review progress every couple of years, there is little of substance for them to review. Malcolm MacGarvin, "Once more when it came to hard decisions, Ministers failed to take action."

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For further information contact:

Malcolm MacGarvin tel: +44 468 665 974

GP UK Press Office tel: +44 171 865 8255/6/7 or +44 171-359 4837

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