A seminar to discuss the challenges to fisheries posed by offshore wind farms has taken place at the European Parliament.
Peter van Dalen MEP, vice present of the Fisheries Committee, hosted 'Can Fisheries and Offshore Wind Farms Coexist?' bringing together scientists, wind industry representatives, NGOs, legislators and small-scale fishers from Belgium, France, Germany, Portugal and the Netherlands who are impacted by offshore wind farms.
The investment made in recent decades to make fishing operations sustainable is a success story lead by the European Union. However, fishermen are saying that this investment and the long-term efforts of the fisheries involved are now being threatened, and in some cases already damaged, by the uncontrolled development of offshore wind capacity as each competes for the marine space.
Although the EU has adopted a directive urging member states to ensure that human activities at sea take place in a way such as to reduce users’ conflicts, it is likely that offshore wind power will increase owing to the push to invest in renewable energy sources.
Job Schot, a Dutch fisherman, said, “We cannot see the benefits of wind farms at sea as we already see indicators of fish decline in areas where wind parks are built. It is clear that both activities cannot coexist in the same area, but as fishermen, we do want to continue our livelihoods and keep on fishing for generations to come.”
EU fishermen call on the European Parliament to support their call for a freeze on the development of offshore wind farm capacity, particularly in sustainably managed fishing grounds.
