INDUSTRIAL FISHING CREWS FIRE FLARES AT GREENPEACE BOATS

MONDAY, JUNE 24TH 1996

Danish industrial fishing vessels were firing flares at Greenpeace inflatable boats as the environmental group continued its campaign this morning to stop industrial fishing in sensitive marine areas, near Edinburgh off the Scottish North Sea coast.

The MV Sirius confronted a group of one Scottish and 10 Danish industrial fishing vessels this morning in an area known as the Wee Bankie off the Firth of Forth, east of Edinburgh. The Wee Bankie is a major feeding ground for commercial fish stocks, dolphins and birds.

The 11 vessels initially stopped fishing when Greenpeace launched four inflatables this morning with 12 activists aboard. However the Scottish vessel, Aquarius 2, continued fishing. Greenpeace, using three swimmers and floating rope stopped the Scottish vessel while other activists attached a barrel to the net and stopped it from sinking.

The crew of a Danish vessel then pulled along side the MV Sirius and fired a flare across its bows and flung grappling hooks at the boat. Later other industrial fishing boats fired flares at Greenpeace inflatables.

"Greenpeace will not be intimidated by the industrial fishing fleet and will continue to protest non-violently against industrial fishing in sensitive marine areas such as the Wee Bankie," said Stefan Flothmann. "The governments of Europe must take action to stop this plundering of the North Sea."

Yesterday Greenpeace stopped one English and five Danish industrial fishing boats from fishing on the Wee Bankie despite attempts by the Danish crew to slash the inflatable boats with knives on poles. The English vessel, the Omega B, agreed to leave the area.

Industrial fisheries using ultra-fine nets takes about 50 per cent of all fish landed in the North Sea. They catch sandeels and other small fish near the bottom of the marine food web. These fish are food for "table" fish such as cod, haddock and whiting, sea birds and other marine wildlife.

The exclusion of industrial fisheries from sensitive areas is one part of an emergency recovery plan needed for the overfished North Sea. For industrial fisheries, Greenpeace also believes any catch limits outside sensitive areas should be set using the precautionary approach and bycatch of other species should be cut drastically.

JON WALTER AT GREENPEACE COMMUNICATIONS 0171-833 0600