In a recent article in The Nelson Mail, Andrew Talley of New Zealand fishing company Amaltal was quoted saying that our "talk about bottom trawling damage and unsustainability was 'unsubstantiated claptrap'". Then Owen Symmans, of the Seafood Industry Council of New Zealand announced that "New Zealand fishers simply do not drag heavy trawl gear across pristine sea floor as suggested. Technology allows boats to 'fly' trawl gear above the sea bottom to target the fish, with little impact on the sea floor or organisms that live on the bottom."
Pretty amazing claim this, considering our release of a striking photograph showing a massive piece of gorgonian coral caught in 2003 in the Tasman Sea. This photograph had, interestingly enough, to be obtained via New Zealand's Official Information Act from the Ministry of Fisheries.
Misters Talley and Symmans may have to eat their words. This sunny Sunday in the Tasman Sea, we caught the New Zealand-registered bottom trawler Waipori dumping a massive coral tree down their stern ramp and into the sea on the West Norfolk Ridge, in the international waters of the Tasman Sea.
We tracked down the trawler in the wee hours of the morning, when most of us were asleep. I awoke with the sensation that were no longer steaming, with the Rainbow Warrior was rolling gently in the swell. I met Chris in the stairwell, who gave me a quick rundown on the trawler. On the deck above there was a hubbub of activity, with people grabbing breakfast, getting their boat suits on.
Before long we had the Avon in the water, getting up close to observe the trawler. Then the call came back 'they're hauling'. We put another boat in the water, and Wooly and Malcolm headed out with the camera gear.
According to Wooly, "when the net was hauled up - after just two hours in the water, the catch was tiny - I estimated maybe no more than 100KG of fish in there".
"There was loads of coral though - the entire cod end was full of it. When the net came up on deck, they were just using one box for the fish they were keeping, and chucking loads of stuff down the ramp - some small fish, and what looked like rocks!"
In Wooly's video footage, the crew of the bottom trawler can be seen picking up and carrying armfuls of black coral across the deck, and putting it to one side. Whatever they were doing with it, they certainly weren't dumping it. The black coral was later identified by marine biologist Steve O'Shea as Leiopathes and Bathypathes - both CITES-listed (UN Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species) and endemic to seamounts.
One of the trawlermen then held up a large crab (identified as Paralomis of Yaldwyni - a very rate species, according to Steve) and waved it at the cameras.
Wooly's footage also shows a man, who appears to be the skipper of the Waipori, walking out towards the stern ramp and waving his fist at us, and shouting "f*** off and get a real job!". Charming.
Later, just before midday, the Waipori came towards us, passing within a stone's throw of our stern - a dangerous manoeuvre, clearly meant to scare us away.
Then, in the afternoon, the most incredible thing happened. We watched the bottom trawler bring up a second haul - with very few fish. However, this time, inside the net, was a huge piece of scarlet-coloured coral. As you can see from the photographs, the coral 'tree' still has its 'roots' - meaning it had been an entire coral colony. As the fishermen wrangled it clear of the 'net, it was easy to see that the coral was taller than the men on the deck.
Then, nonchalantly, in full view of us, two of the bottom trawler's crew dragged the coral tree to the stern ramp, and slung it down. It plunged into water, sinking immediately, 1000m down... dead.
There's a mixture of emotions running around the Rainbow Warrior at the moment. On one hand, some of us are elated that we've caught the fishing industry red-handed. On the other hand, some of us feel disgusted - and saddened - to have witnessed such blatant environmental abuse.
I've just been out on deck with Gareth, cataloguing the 'bykill' that we collected today, rattails, dories, sponges and other beasties that we have yet to identify. We also retrieved what appear to be two dead lantern sharks. These are beautiful black dogfish with bright green eyes, and grooved spines on their dorsal fins. They get their name from their ability to produce bioluminescence - a method of hiding their silhouettes from below.
So... back to the claim by Mr Symmans that 'bottom' trawlers don't touch the bottom... well, it's claptrap - simple as that. And we would like him to explain where this mother-of-all corals came from - if not from the bottom of the sea. After all, there's not much in the way of coral, crabs or rocks hovering around above the ocean floor! These bottom trawlers are basically clearfelling the ocean floor, mowing down entire habitats - and no amount of public relations spin by the fishing industry can provide a cover-up for this ongoing environmental crime.
- Dave
Comments
A moratorium is not the answer. God only knows too well what happens when The New Zealand Fishing Industry faces a moratorium or any other MPA for that matter. Development of that sector, at it's most basic level is turned into a stand still.
You say by definition a ' Moratorium" is a temporary hault. What concerns me is if a temporary hault is established, how does industry know when it will finish.
Take a marine park for example, it's not classed as a marine reserve, however how are we to know if it will be established as a marine reserve in due course.
You see it's not what i know, but it's what i don't know that continues to worry me. It's claimed some marine organisms take hundreds of years too develop, is there any report to suggest when a moratorium might end?
Who set's the Guide lines here? Has the New Zealand fishing industry been directly involved in the decision making process? These questions i need answered. Because im not usually invited to a NGO ( Non Government Organisation) meeting, there's a lot we need to talk about.
Posted by: Marlin Spike at June 26, 2005 12:36 AM
Marlin Spike - you should take the time to read up on what's going on here. The campaign is about a *moratorium on bottom trawling in international waters*.
'Moratorium' is by definition a ' temporary halt' not a ban.
It's not about a ban, and it's not aboutt ALL fishing and it's not about anything that happening within the EEZ.
It is about one particualr fishing method - bottom trawling - and only in international waters where there is no regulation.
Posted by: Pete at June 25, 2005 08:25 PM
We seem to be running into a tangent here. For all intents and purposes, are we a. Wanting to ban deep sea trawling. Or b. Impose a moritorium on high seas fishing. Just need this clarifyed before i make a comment.
Posted by: Marlin Spike at June 25, 2005 06:56 PM
What a wonderful job Greenpeace is doing......I live in Nelson and my family are looking forward to visiting the rainbow warrior tomorrow....my partner Vinny went to the powhiri today as the boat came in and he said what a lovely bunch of people from different nationalities on board....shame only a handful of people were around...lets hope more will turn up over the weekend......it breaks my heart to see what's happening with the bottom trawling...would love to have some constructive ideas on how we can help put a stop to this in New ZealandxxTanya Nock
Posted by: Tanya at June 17, 2005 10:42 PM
Hi, I just wanted to say first of all that this story on trawling was very interesting. It's amasing how many times what people say (the "claptrap" comment by Andrew Talley), and what they do are so blatantly different and hypocritical. Well done to all aboard the Rainbow Warrior.
However, my concern is this: what is to be done about it? It seems to me that most issues, no matter how alarming or horrifying (like invading Iraq without Jus ad Bellum), eventually just die down once the public loses interest, and never get properly resolved.
I hope you have success in your endeavours, and that the people responsible for this destruction of our oceans are held accountable.
Posted by: Philip Bailey at June 16, 2005 04:41 PM
That's really amazing and quite scary, thanks so much for putting your time into exposing this tragedy.thanks for putting your life and limb on the line for this amazing cause. I only hope it will be stopped before its to late
John Darroch
Posted by: jphn at June 14, 2005 09:54 PM
well you couldn't get much more damning evidence than this video. Its very sad that N.Z should be doing this sort of thing We complain of Asians strip mining our shores, what a hypocritical outlook!
At least GREENPEACE is showing its impartial.
More strength to your campaign and well done Rainbow Warriors
Posted by: sally willmot at June 14, 2005 09:12 PM
if what greenpeace is doing isnt a real job i don't know what is! I'd be proud to work for greenpeace.
Posted by: kate at June 14, 2005 06:28 PM
Stuff them, stuff them all. Dont worry about that "f... off and get a real job statement" - I have one of those "real jobs" and while I think its an important one, I think yours is just as valid, if not more important. Go out there and speak for all of us, and speak for the sea that cannot protect itself. Good luck, and dont give up. I cant give much, and dont know if I have the stomach for the work you do, but this person with this "real job" is backing you and yours!
Posted by: Shelley Urlich at June 14, 2005 05:42 PM
Absolutely unbelievable! Don't they realise what they are doing or is it just all about money? The Government needs to stand up and put an end to them trawling the ocean floor.
If ever an environmental atrocity warranted a prison sentence, this is it!
Posted by: Steve O'Shea at June 13, 2005 09:30 AM
I appreciate much more your having the courage to do this since I transcribed a Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution Ocean Life Institute Symposium last fall. The link, for those not on precious satellite time, is http://www.whoi.edu/ but I see no Weblication of the results yet. During my work on the symposium, I learned that orange roughy (formerly called "slimehead" until their entry into the market) may live to 135 years, that no one knows how or where they spawn, and that bottom trawling may well be destroying their spawning grounds. ( Many fish like to spawn on the slopes or at the tops of seamounts that are ravaged by bottom trawlers.) Deep-sea species in general appear to be very long lived and slow growing--not traits one should be seeing in species targeted (or in the bykill) for mass-market exploitation. How would people feel if they all knew they were eating something that was 100 years old and didn't spawn till it was in its 30s? There are campaigns to ask fish-market and grocery-store staff where their fish come from, because some fisheries may be in managed zones. But I've never tasted orange roughy and never will. Another highly endangered fish is the "Chilean seabass" (another market name) or Patagonian toothfish. Never eat that one either. The destruction of the fragile coral, the habitat, the bykill--these are all issues that a civilian boycott could help. Don't eat deep-sea fish unless you know it comes from a well-managed fishery, and don't eat some deep-sea species at all. Thanks again for your courage, Rainbow Warrier crew.
Posted by: Arel Lucas at June 13, 2005 04:12 AM
Dear Crew out there on the waters.
Thank you soooooo much for pointing this out to us. I admire you finding out about these things and acting upon them.
How can I as a consumer buy fish now. ? just not ever again? Is there labeling? fishing myself?
For now I teach my children about the marvels of nature, homeschooling,last year, this year Waldorfschooling, own vege garden, buying as much as possible organic, going the extra mile. In Dk we never have a car, but in NZ we need it...
Keep it up.
Thank you. We never give up dreaming and seeing the ideal, as i believe that is what creates our reality, and the more informed unscathed nature dreams, the more will come, but of course not by closing my eyes to reality that you reveil to the public, to preserve the ideal state.
Arohanui,
Cornelia
I just never understand how one can do this at all!?
