France Under Pressure To Save Dolphins From Trawlers
Muhammad Irfan Published January 25, 2023 | 04:40 PM
Paris, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 25th Jan, 2023 ) :Hundreds of dolphins are washing up on France's Atlantic coast and thousands more are believed killed in fishermen's nets each year, as environmentalists and Brussels pressure the government to protect the marine mammals.
On Wednesday, Allain Bougrain-Dubourg, head of the League for the Protection of Birds (LPO), said he would write to President Emmanuel Macron that "the time has come to do our utmost to save dolphins from mistreatment or even extinction.
"This dramatic situation is even less acceptable given that it is avoidable," Bougrain-Dubourg added.
Pro-dolphin activists say harmful fishing activities, including deep-sea and sea-bed trawling, must be halted for several weeks in the Bay of Biscay between France and Spain.
The Pelagis ocean observatory has spotted a surge in dolphin deaths on the Atlantic coast, with 127 common dolphins washed up in January alone -- up from 73 in the same month last year.
Increased dolphin deaths are usually seen later in the year, during their February-March coastal feeding season that brings them closer to fishing vessels chasing hake and sea bass.
This year the increase in finds is "especially early", Pelagis said this month.
Over the whole of 2022, 669 dolphins washed up -- down from 1,299 in 2020.
Scientists believe that more than 80 percent of dead dolphins sink or decompose at sea rather than washing ashore, suggesting the real number of deaths is far higher at up to 11,000 per year.
Of the washed-up dolphins, "most presented signs of being caught in fishing equipment", Pelagis said, with the LPO singling out "slices in the tail fins and clear traces of nets" on their skin.
- 'Half-measures' - CIEM, a scientific body that tracks North Atlantic ecosystems, has for years urged a winter pause for some indiscriminate fishing techniques, meeting fierce resistance from industrial fishermen.
After two years of pressure from the European Commission and under the spotlight from activists, Paris has so far offered an eight-point plan with technical measures, stopping far short of an outright ban.
Measures include a voluntary observer scheme aboard fishing vessels, satellite tracking and fitting trawlers with cameras or acoustic repellent devices that drive the dolphins away.
Many fishing ships are already fitted with the devices in a "large-scale experiment" to test their effectiveness, the government said.
But the LPO denounced the government moves as "half-measures... that will change nothing and cost us precious time".
Environmentalist group Sea Shepherd said the repellent devices "create huge exclusion zones in dolphins' feeding grounds" that risk cutting them off from needed nourishment.
Paris has not completely closed the door to temporary bans, suggesting "time- and space-limited closures" to fishing could be tested in the Bay of Biscay in winter 2024-25 "if there are no satisfactory results in reducing accidental catches" of dolphins.
That isn't soon enough for the activists. Sea Shepherd have filed a criminal complaint on January 16 against persons unknown over the failure to intervene.
Related Topics
Recent Stories
Selection committee dissolved over Pakistan women cricket team's poor performanc ..
Punjab CM Maryam Nawaz in police uniform at Chung police center
Currency Rate In Pakistan - Dollar, Euro, Pound, Riyal Rates On 25 April 2024
Today Gold Rate in Pakistan 25 April 2024
Mired in crisis, Boeing reports another loss
Session Awarding Ceremony 2024 held at Cadet College Muzaffarabad
Austrian ski great Hirscher to make comeback under Dutch flag
Pakistan, Japan agrees to convene 'Economic Policy Dialogue'
FM Dar conveys deepest sympathy on torrential rains devastation in UAE
Spain PM Sanchez says weighing resignation after wife's graft probe
Tennis: ATP/WTA Madrid Open results - 1st update
Long-lost Klimt portrait auctioned off for 30 mn euros
More Stories From Miscellaneous
-
PDMA predicts gusty wind, rain with thunder, hails
2 days ago -
Iranian president Raisi given guard of honour at PM House
3 days ago -
Intellectuals, writers accolades Naseer Mirza on his literary contribution
4 days ago -
Bahawalpur Adabi Sangat hosts memorable mushaira
4 days ago -
Cattle farming vital to alleviate poverty in rural areas
4 days ago -
Pakistan: A land of tourism, archeological wonders
4 days ago
-
Transforming education sector: from job hunters to job creators
6 days ago -
Amjad Bobby remembered on 19th death anniversary for timeless contributions to music
10 days ago -
Legendary actor Nadeem’s 26 films released on Eid-ul-Fitr days in 50 years
11 days ago -
Besant Hall Cultural Centre to celebrate evening with Sanam Marvi on 26 April
11 days ago -
Radio Bahawalpur presents program “Eidi Shidi”
14 days ago -
Radio Bahawalpur to broadcast Eid programs
16 days ago