A blog by Ella Daish, RSPB Campaigner
Hundreds of thousands of tonnes of sandeels are taken out of the North Sea every year, almost exclusively by EU fishing vessels. This is putting additional pressure on seabirds, like kittiwakes and puffins, who have a whole host of other dangers to contend with such as climate change, bird flu, and poor marine planning.
Sandeels are a vital food source for our seabirds which must be protected. That’s why we’ve been campaigning for over 25 years for an end to the damaging industrial fishing of sandeels in UK waters. In 2023, we have seen both the UK Government and Scottish Governments launch game-changing consultations that have brought us closer to our goal.
In reaction to this we launched two successful campaigns and thanks to the help of over 43,000 of you who took action with us by responding to the UK Government and Scottish Government consultations, we have shown overwhelming support for this industrial fishing to be stopped.
In June, the UK Government published the responses to their consultation, and almost all the responses backed our call (over 99.5%!). The Scottish Government’s consultation closed in October, and we are still awaiting the results of this, but we hope that it will show similar levels of support for ending industrial sandeel trawling in Scotland.
What’s next?
We hope to see measures being announced by both governments in the new year to stop sandeel fishing once and for all. They must action this by 16th February 2024, otherwise they will miss the deadline for making the announcement in time for the next season of sandeel fishing which will be due to start in April.
Our policy and campaigning teams in both countries are working closely with governments and are keeping a close eye on what is happening. This is a critical time for our seabirds, and we must respond by throwing them this vital lifeline. In the new year we will continue to keep the pressure up to ensure this does not happen for another season.
Thank you so much for your support this year, we couldn’t do it without you!
Read our report for more.
This is such good news. Fingers crossed that wirds lead to action by both governments to end sandeel fishing this year and for good