Dolphins Aren’t Discard

Stop dolphins dying
in supertrawler nets

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Scroll down to find out more about this serious issue and our response.

What are supertrawlers?

The supersized nets mean that fish aren’t the only animals that get caught. Dolphins, and any other marine wildlife unfortunate enough to be nearby, are unable to escape and end up being needlessly killed as bycatch.

Bycatch (or ‘by-catch’):

Unwanted fish and other marine wildlife that have been caught by a fishing vessel unintentionally (i.e. “by mistake”).

Looking for answers

The Pelagic Freezer-trawler Association (PFA) represents nine European companies, which operate a fleet of 23 vessels, including the supertrawlers that we’ve observed most frequently in the English Channel.

Research has found that supertrawlers “are not adequately monitored for bycatch, despite clear indications that bycatch is occurring”. Despite their immense catching capacity, they aren’t legally required to carry independent observers or cameras to record bycatch, and are subject to less strict monitoring than the UK’s smaller-scale boats.

The PFA has defended its members by claiming that their activity is “sustainable” and “science-based”. However, when we contacted them to request the data supporting their claims on bycatch reduction, they did not share any evidence with us.

Since November 2021, vessels that are licensed to fish in UK waters have been required to report any marine mammal bycatch to the Marine Management Organisation (MMO) within 48 hours. We submitted a Freedom of Information request to the MMO at the end of the previous supertrawler season, asking for cetacean bycatch reports from supertrawlers, but were told that they didn’t have this information – so where is the data?

How you can support us

If you live in the UK, please write to your MP and ask them to support stronger enforcement of UK law to protect dolphins from supertrawlers.

We’ve prepared a simple three-step guide to help you send your message.

We’re calling for remote electronic monitoring (REM), including onboard CCTV, to be introduced for all fishing vessels in UK waters. REM is a reliable and cost-effective tool that’s already used by many other nations to improve data collection, transparency and accountability. We believe that REM will shine a much-needed light on this problem, giving us information that can be used to save dolphins and other victims of bycatch.

“From the hundreds of dolphins being killed off UK shores to the countless marine life lost as supertrawler bycatch around the world: this unjustifiable death and devastation must end.”

Harry Eckman, CEO of the World Cetacean Alliance

The story so far

Since the start of this campaign, more than 100,000 people from around the world have joined us in calling for more transparency, accountability, and stronger legislation to end supertrawler bycatch.

Join our mission today

Please write to your MP, add your name to our petition, consider donating to support this campaign, and sign up to our newsletter to keep up to date with this campaign.

Sign up to receive updates on this campaign and the WCA’s other work to protect dolphins, whales, porpoises and their ocean homes.

Glossary

Supertrawler

A huge factory fishing vessel, capable of catching, processing, freezing, and storing thousands of tonnes of fish in a single trip.

While there is no agreed definition, anything over 95 metres long can easily be considered a ‘supertrawler’, with some commentators suggesting that vessels over 55 metres could meet the designation. The largest trawlers can measure almost 150 metres long, weigh up to 10,000 tonnes, and use nets up to a kilometre long.

These massive ships often stay at sea for weeks or even months, fishing waters from the UK to the (often poorly monitored or regulated) west coast of Africa, pulling in anything unfortunate enough to be caught up in their vast nets.

Bycatch

Any fish or marine life that is caught by a fishing vessel unintentionally.

Fishers aim to catch a particular type of fish, but this often won’t be the only wildlife they end up catching, as many fishing methods don’t discriminate between different species. When a fishing vessel catches something “by mistake” that isn’t its target species of fish, this is called bycatch.

Bycatch can include dolphins, porpoises and whales, but also sharks, seals, turtles, seabirds, or any fish species that the vessel hasn’t set out to catch.

Cetacean

A dolphin, porpoise or whale.

Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ)

An area of ocean that extends up to 200 miles offshore.

Nations have certain rights regarding the exploration and use of resources below the surface of the water in their EEZ. However, unlike territorial sea (which extends up to 12 miles from shore), the surface of the EEZ is considered part of international waters.

This means that, each year, supertrawlers from across the world are allowed to operate in the EEZ off the coast of the UK.

FAQ

1. Why is bycatch a problem?

By the fishing industry’s own estimates, bycatch accounts for  1% of everything they catch. In real terms, this is tens of millions of animals mistakenly caught, killed, and discarded every single day.

Bycatch is one of the biggest threats to cetaceans (dolphins, porpoises and whales), and an increasing but avoidable cause of death for these amazing animals worldwide.

2. How can you be sure that dolphins are dying because of supertrawlers?

Our investigation of dolphins’ bodies washed up on the Sussex shore has indicated that they were victims of supertrawler bycatch. This can be understood from physical clues (e.g. rope tied onto their tails or tangled around their bodies; missing fins that have been cut off to release them from nets; other marks on their bodies from netting) or the absence of certain other physical signs (if the dolphin was otherwise healthy, with no signs of natural injury or illness, then it’s likely that the animal died due to bycatch). We also record significantly higher numbers of dolphin deaths when supertrawlers are present.

Previously, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) banned UK vessels from fishing for bass off the South West coast of England after research found that the pelagic trawling was responsible for very high death rates of dolphins.

3. Isn’t it illegal for supertrawlers to fish in UK waters?

Unfortunately not. Since the 1980s, UK fishing quota has become a tradable commodity which can be swapped, sold and leased by non-UK interests.

This has led to over 50% of UK fishing quota now being held by Dutch, Icelandic or Spanish companies, allowing their vessels to legally fish in the UK’s Exclusive Economic Zone (12 to 200 miles from shore).

4. What are the rules and regulations on fishing in UK waters?

Inshore fishers (the majority [79%] of the UK fishing industry, who fish mainly within 12 miles of land) must follow strict legislation, including limits on how many of each fish species they can catch. There is less monitoring of fishing vessels that operate beyond the 12 mile limit, despite these vessels being significantly larger.

Currently, all fishing vessels in UK waters are required to report any bycatch of marine mammals to the MMO within 48 hours. However, as no bycatch data seems to have been reported by supertrawlers since this requirement was introduced, the legislation simply isn’t fit for purpose in its current state.

Since leaving the European Union, the UK has developed its own fisheries management rules with the introduction of the Fisheries Act 2020. The Act includes new objectives requiring fisheries to be environmentally sustainable and to reduce or reverse any negative impacts on the marine ecosystem, such as ensuring that incidental catches of sensitive species are minimised and, where possible, eliminated.

The Act also includes an objective that requires a precautionary approach be applied to fisheries management. This approach is defined as: “an approach in which the absence of sufficient scientific information is not used to justify postponing or failing to take management measures to conserve target species, associated or dependent species, non-target species or their environment.”

The WCA’s view is that destructive and poorly monitored supertrawler activity is in direct conflict with the objectives of the Fisheries Act 2020. Unless meaningful action is taken to protect dolphins and other marine wildlife from industrial fishing, the UK will be failing in its legal duty to achieve these objectives.

5. Where are supertrawlers based?

Supertrawlers are flagged to more than 40 different countries but, in some cases, ships that are flagged to one country are in fact owned by organisations in a different country. The vessels also sail to and operate in every corner of the globe, fishing in every ocean.

6. If the 12 mile boundary means that supertrawlers don’t enter UK territorial waters, why is it our problem?

Dolphins and other wildlife don’t understand lines on a map. Bycatch happens anywhere and everywhere that supertrawlers operate, and the impact of this washes up on our shoreline.

The UK still has some control over its waters beyond the 12 mile territorial limit, in its Exclusive Economic Zone, and can exercise powers over any fishing vessels operating there.

7. Why are you focusing on supertrawlers? Aren’t other types of fishing just as bad?

We recognise that there are many other damaging fishing methods, such as fly shooting and ghost gear, which all result in the deaths of dolphins, whales and other marine life around the world. However, we consider supertrawlers to be one of the worst offenders.

Supertrawlers are foremost among the large-scale commercial fishing vessels that target midwater (pelagic) fish such as mackerel, blue whiting and bass in UK seas and adjacent waters. Due to their sheer size, supertrawlers are responsible for an overwhelming amount of bycatch, far more than smaller fishing vessels. One supertrawler can potentially cause thousands of dolphins to be killed in a single year.

Despite this, pelagic trawlers aren’t adequately monitored for bycatch, nor are they held to the same level of scrutiny as small-scale fishers. We believe that this injustice needs to end and supertrawlers must be held accountable.

If our campaign is successful, we plan to continue our efforts by looking at bycatch caused by other fishing methods and exploring the most effective ways to tackle those.

8. Why can’t dolphins just avoid the nets?

Trawling is a method of fishing that involves dragging or pulling a net through the water behind the ship. With supertrawlers, these nets can stretch almost a kilometre in length, the net mouth can be 200m across, and the nets themselves can cover an area the size of 450 tennis courts. Unlike bottom trawls grinding along the seabed, these mid-water nets are effectively silent. Nothing that encounters these nets is likely to escape. They are simply too big to avoid.

9. Do you think that dolphins are more important, from a welfare perspective, than fish?

No, we don’t. We recognise that, even ignoring the issue of bycatch, the global fishing industry catches between 1 and 3 trillion fish every year. Each one of these is a sentient animal whose welfare is compromised and whose life is ultimately ended because of humans’ desire to eat fish.

However, this is a connected but separate issue to cetaceans being killed as bycatch. Our focus on dolphins, porpoises and whales doesn’t diminish the welfare issues affecting other species; it is simply where we, as the World Cetacean Alliance, direct our efforts.

10. What happens to all of the fish that are caught by supertrawlers?

It depends on the species that a supertrawler is catching, but most of the fish from these industrial factory ships end up in cheaper, processed seafood products.

A significant amount will be for human consumption, but some of the catch may also be used for pet food and animal feed.

11. How can I tell if I’m eating fish caught by supertrawlers?

You can’t. Sadly, in the majority of cases, there is no way that consumers are able to identify where their fish came from or what fishing method was used to catch it.

What you can do is write to the company that you buy your fish and seafood products from and ask them to phase out supertrawler-caught fish from their supply chains and product ranges.

12. Doesn’t the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) assure sustainable fishing practices and ensure that there is no bycatch?

The MSC aims to reduce, not eliminate, levels of bycatch from fishing practices. MSC certified products do not guarantee (nor claim to guarantee) there is no bycatch at all. While MSC certified fisheries may have reduced levels of bycatch, they are currently unable to provide enough clear evidence that this is the case.