Greenpeace delivers iced dolphin to Defra in fishing protest

A dead dolphin encased in ice – a weighty two tonnes of maritime protest – was delivered to Defra's doorstep today to highlight the problems associated with pair trawler fishing; a practice which kills large numbers of dolphins in UK waters every year.

The delivery was in conjunction with a legal challenge that was launched today by Greenpeace to secure the banning of pair trawling for sea bass - a method of fishing which involves two boats dragging a net which can be as large as several football pitches.

Greenpeace argue that this type of fishing is responsible for the deaths of thousands of dolphins around the UK every year and, by not addressing the problem, the government "is not fulfilling its legal obligations".

The dolphin was killed by a trawler, and was recovered recently in the Channel by a Greenpeace ship investigating dolphin deaths caused by fishing fleets. The dolphin bears the tell-tale signs of having been caught in a net, including cut and torn fins and flipper and a broken beak and teeth, the campaign group said.

Greenpeace made its delivery today and accused the government of a "lack of action" to address the issue.

Sarah Duthie, Greenpeace Oceans Campaigner, said: "For far too long, the government has continued to allow destructive fishing practices to push dolphins around the UK towards extinction. By allowing this killing to continue, the government is failing in its legal obligation to protect dolphins, and that is why Greenpeace is today mounting a legal challenge."

Responding to Greenpeace, Ben Bradshaw, Fisheries and Nature Conservation Minister, said: "I have said on numerous occasions that the level of dolphin deaths is unacceptable and action must be taken. There is ample evidence that these are not empty words. Indeed, on 23 March the UK achieved an important step forward to reduce cetacean deaths when agreement was reached on a new Council regulation in Brussels."

Mr Bradshaw said that new regulations will help alleviate the problem, including: compulsory acoustic devices required on fishing vessels over 12 metres using fixed gear in the North Sea, Channel and Celtic Sea; and the use of observers on certain sectors of the fishing fleet to improve knowledge of where by-catch occurs.

He added that EU-wide action was "the most effective way of tackling the problem", but the UK had not ruled out unilateral action on bass pair trawl fishing. The government will consider its options when it receives the report from this year's trialling of separator grids in the UK bass trawl fishery.

Unintentional capture in fishing nets is estimated to kill some 300,000 whales, dolphins and porpoises a year. Overall, it has been estimated that 23% of the global fisheries catch is returned, dead, to the sea, Greenpeace said.

(gmcg)