Monday, March 20, the Council of State ordered the French government to close certain fishing areas in the Bay of Biscay to ensure the survival of dolphins. Although this decision has been widely welcomed by NGOs, they remain vigilant as to its implementation by the State. For their part, many fishermen denounce an attack on their activity.
Images of mutilated, bloody dolphin corpses, brought back by the swell and littering the beaches… Since mid-December 2022, at least 910 of these marine mammals have washed up on the French Atlantic coast, according to one of the latest counts by the Pelagis Oceanographic Observatory.
And Monday, March 20, the Council of State agreed environmental defense associations. The High Court has ordered the government to temporarily close certain fishing areas in the Bay of Biscay, within the next six months, in order to protect the dolphins in the region and “ limit accidental catches “. Indeed, Pelagis, French sentinel of marine mammal strandings, believes that between 5 000 and 10 Every year, 000 cetaceans find themselves trapped by fishing nets in French waters, and die of asphyxiation or laceration.
With this decisionthe Council of State followed the request of the three NGOs Sea Shepherd France, France Nature Environnement (FNE) and Défense des Milieux Aquatiques, which had filed appeals with the body at the end of 2021. “ A historic victory for Sea Shepherd France. “ This new injunction gives us hope says Jérôme Graefe, lawyer at France Nature Environnement. Because according to him, the situation of cetaceans remains catastrophic ” For years. “ The scientific findings today are clear and serious. In the long term, the common dolphins of the Bay of Biscay could completely disappear “storms the lawyer.
While environmental NGOs welcome this decision while remaining “ vigilant on its implementation, the National Committee for Maritime Fisheries and Marine Farming (CNPMEM) expressed in a press release her “ stupor ” and his “ incomprehension ” in the face of a decision that he considers “ violent for the profession. “ This judgment is fatal and scandalous. For five years, professionals in the trade have been at the initiative of technical and scientific programs to try to find solutions to reconcile fishing activities and dolphin protection. The State imposed an action plan on us in 2022, and there, the Council of State comes to question everything », regrets Olivier Le Nezet, president of the National Fisheries Committee.
Especially since this conclusion of the Council of State comes as this Saturday, March 25, World Day for the end of fishinga day claimed by several environmental NGOs, and established in 2017 by the Swiss association Pour l’Égalité Animale.
The state “ in breach of its obligations »
This heated debate between fishermen and NGOs is not new, and this is not the state’s first warning about the preservation of the oceans. In 2019, a collective of 26 European NGOs urged the European Commission to take legal action against Member States that do not respect their commitment to protect the seabed, such as the directive “ Habitats of 1992, which promotes the conservation of fauna and flora. The complaint resulted in two convictions and a formal notice from France in July 2020.
“ Instead of protecting dolphins, France is continually in breach of its obligations at European level “, denounces Jérôme Graefe. The State Secretariat for the Sea has finally published a decree at the end of December 2022 to oblige more than 200 gillnetters present in the Bay of Biscay to equip themselves with acoustic repellents (called “ pingers “). The goal : keep dolphins away from boats and nets using a sound transmitter.
The State has also launched an emergency plan in the summer of 2022 and a working group bringing together fishermen, scientists and associations to monitor it. But according to Lamya Essemlali, president of Sea Shepherd France, her NGO would have been excluded from this group at the request of the fishermen, because of her refusal “ to no longer go to sea to film fishing expeditions and net hauls “. Since 2018, Sea Shepherd France has been leading the operation Dolphin Bycatchwhich documents the captures of dolphins to denounce opacity around the fishing sector “. “ Fishermen normally have a regulatory obligation to report dolphin catches. But at present, it is estimated that the declared share represents only between 1 and 2% of the total real catches “Laments Lamya Essemlali.
The fishing sector, a business Very important »
For its part, the State Secretariat for the Sea said this Tuesday, March 21 ” take note of the judgment of the Council of State », and guarantees the strengthening of « innovative devices for detecting the presence of cetaceans “. He speaks, however, of an implementation of the systems “ in the winter 2024 and not in the next six months, the deadline set by the Council of State. No mention of closed fishing areas is made. Questioned at the Salon de l’Agriculture on February 25, Emmanuel Macron nevertheless promised to commit to respecting the decision of the Council of State. Finally, the secretariat recalls the investment of the fishing sector in recent months to demonstrate its desire to preserve the marine environment and biodiversity “.
A state response deemed “ too shy vis-à-vis the opinion of the High Court, but which does not surprise Jérôme Graefe. “ The fishing sector is a very important economic sector in France. Public actors therefore do not want to alienate fishermen, and in this sense, are afraid to take measures to protect biodiversity which could upset them. “, he argues.
The closure of fishing areas, only essential measure »
Sea Shepherd France points to certain inappropriate methods already implemented by the government, such as acoustic repellents on fishing boats. This solution would not solve the problem, according to the NGOs and the Council of State. In its decision, the High Court considers that the “ acoustic deterrents ” do not allow “ sufficiently reduce accidental catches “. A notice that follows established recommendations by researchers from the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES), published on February 9. “ When pingers are deployed over large areas, they create noise pollution that chases dolphins away from their feeding grounds, which is problematic for the survival of their species. “, adds Lamya Essemlali.
Other option : the surveillance cameras on board the boats. “ They are great for collecting information and getting a better idea of the impact of fishing, but they won’t prevent dolphin catches. », Supports the president of Sea Shepherd France. To curb “ the carnage “, the only real solution recommended by the Council of State remains “ closure of fishing in areas and for appropriate periods “. Following ICES guidelines, environmental NGOs suggest fencing fishing grounds for three months in winter, where the dolphin mortality rate is highest, and one month in summer.
A measurement “ win-win for biodiversity, but also for fishermen, according to Jérôme Graefe. “ With these space-time closures, the target species will be able to rest, so the fish will be able to grow and reproduce. There will be a greater abundance of fish, so fishing will be more successful the rest of the year », Details the FNE lawyer. Fishermen could also be compensated : “ There are funds specifically provided to compensate for their downtime, such as the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund. »
For fishermen, a flurry of attacks »
But on the side of the fishermen, the reactions are much more hostile. After the Council of State’s decision, Olivier Le Nezet, President of the National Committee for Maritime Fisheries and Marine Farming (CNPMEM), published a open letter addressed to Emmanuel Macron. He denounces a surge of attacks “from an ecology” radical with regard to fishing, which according to him, aims to end their job “. “ We have the feeling of voluntary sabotage by NGOs to avoid finding any solution », accuses the president of the CNPMEM, for whom the dialogue is now broken with the associations.
According to him, the Council of State issued a decision “ without pragmatism or logic “. “ The fishermen are not there to catch the dolphins, we have to stop pointing the finger at us like criminals. We talk more about that than food sovereignty… The real subject we need is to be accompanied, and to determine technical solutions that do not prevent our activity “, he protests. Olivier Le Nezet also recalls the fact that foreign ships circulate in the region : “ These States must also be involved in this program so that we can move forward together, otherwise it will not be effective. The president of the CNPMEM says he is studying the possibility of an appeal.
Charges which the NGOs concerned defend themselves against. “ We never wanted to attack the fishing industry. Now, the sector must take this time of closure to think about more selective fishing methods that are less destructive to marine biodiversity. He must take responsibility “, tempers Jérôme Graefe. The lawyer from France Nature Environnement also recalls that these closure measures only concern certain types of fishing. “ More than 50% of the boats use at least two different fishing gears during the year. We want solutions that also go in their direction “, he certifies.
And if the state refuses to comply ? “ He risks being fined tens of millions of euros at European level “, announces Lamya Essemlali. For the latter, this problem will cost millions of euros no matter what, so as much as it serves to save dolphins rather than pay fines “. In the coming months, the NGOs intend to ensure the concrete implementation of the measures and the “ respect for the law “. If the government does not apply the decision of the Council of State, France Nature Environnement is already considering new legal proceedings.
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