The Dutch fishing industry sees opportunities in a broader use of the seas in order to feed the growing world population. Yet, at the same time, they regard the use of the sea for wind energy and the upcoming landing obligation as threats.
There is plenty of fish in the sea and the Dutch fishing industry is doing well financially. Yet, there are dark clouds on the horizon. In 2019, the last phase of the landing obligation enters into force for plaice and sole, which forces fishermen to bring their entire catch ashore, even discards. Then there is the Brexit and all it may entail for the EU fishing member states.
Furthermore, it is unclear what will happen with regulations concerning pulse fishing. Although much more environmentally friendly than some other types of fishing, there is a strong lobby to abolish it altogether. Finally, fishermen are literally losing 'ground' to offshore wind farms and nature reserves.
In an article in SWZ|Maritime's September issue, Johan Nooitgedagt, chairman of the Nederlandse Vissersbond (Dutch Fishermen's Association) explains what the Dutch fishing industry has to deal with, now and in the future, but also discusses what new fishing vessels are being built in the Netherlands as well as where we stand in terms of innovation.
Read the full article by downloading it as PDF now (in Dutch only).
Picture: The TX-36 Jan van Toon is one of the fishing vessels using pulse technology.
