Basking sharks and critically endangered skates were among the more than 30 tonnes of threatened fish species discarded by Irish fishing vessels in 2019.
The “shocking” figure is reported in a new investigation from TheJournal.ie’s Noteworthy strand, which looks into the impact of fishing on wildlife in Irish waters.
Concerning increases in cetacean strandings and the recent controversy around seal cull proposals in Co Kerry are also probed, but the story leads with a detailed breakdown of Ireland’s bycatch rates from 2019 data.
According to Padráic Fogarty of the Irish Wildlife Trust — who branded the numbers involved as “absolutely shocking” — the situation underscores “how flawed our system of management of the ocean is”.
However, the solution is far from clear-cut, as the chief executive of the Irish South and West Fish Producers Organisation warns that cracking down on discards will encourage fishers to skirt the rules.
“Don’t say ‘you’re discarding the fish, you’re killing them’, as what will they do? They’ll stop recording them,” Patrick Murphy said.
TheJournal.ie has much more on the story, which continues this week with a closer look at enforcement of rules in the industry as well as decision-making in the fishing sector.