13 November 2013
A pilot project, which has provided 26 percent more quota to small boat fishermen as well as helping to reduce discards, has been branded an unprecedented success by members of the Ramsgate Quota Group who have called on DEFRA to extend the project wider in 2014.
The issues surrounding the
availability of quota for smaller boat fishermen have repeatedly hit the
headlines over recent months, with a number of organisations and environmental
groups challenging the volumes available for small boats.
Of the project, Eddie
Temple, who has been a fisherman for more than 25 years, said: “Quota has
always been a complicated issue which puts restrictions on when, where and what
we fishermen can fish. Through this pilot project in Ramsgate we are able to be
more in control of our businesses so we can decide when to go out and what we
want to catch. This new flexibility has allowed us to operate more safely as we’re
not forced out in bad weather conditions, and give us more independence in how
we run our operations.”
The arrangement has been
brokered by the NFFO, which represents
fishermen’s groups, individual fishermen and producer organisations in
England, Wales and Northern Ireland and has been working to find fairer deals
for small boat fishermen across the country.