A Super Trawler Dumps 100,000 Dead Fish Off the Coast of France

A Dutch super trawler has come under fire from activist groups and government officials when it was discovered that it dumped 100,000 dead fish off the coast of France.

Sea Shepard was first in releasing images of the incident. The heartbreaking photos showed, “the ocean’s surface covered by a dense layer of blue whiting, a sub-species of cod, used to mass-produce fish fingers, fish oil and meal,” according to The Guardian.

The FV Margiris, the second-largest trawling ship in the world, was responsible for the mess. This isn’t the first time they’ve landed in hot waters either. Several years ago, they were banned from Australian waters because of the massive number of fish it would remove from the ocean. The fear then was that it would harm the ecosystem.

The maritime minister of France, Annick Girardin, is asking authorities to investigate the situation. She also mentioned, in a tweet, that penalties would be assessed if any violations had taken place.

“France supports sustainable fishing and this isn’t reflected here. Should an infraction have occurred, sanctions would be taken against the responsible shipowner that will be identified.”

The association which represents the trawler, The Pelagic-Freeze Trawler Association, said it wasn’t intentional and “was caused by the unexpectedly large size of the fish caught.”

“The blue whiting is a target species (not by-catch) which is of great value to our members. We can tell you that it’s not in the interest of our members to lose the fish. The lost fish will be deducted from the vessel’s quota. The PFA’s members fish only for human consumption, and we regret that the fish will now not be available for that purpose.”

Sea Shepard isn’t buying it. In their eyes, the trawler was dumping a fish that it didn’t want. Supposedly, this is a common occurrence and is banned in the European Union.

Related Content:

• Hawaii Becomes First State To Ban Shark Fishing
• What Are The Global Consequences Of Overfishing And Why You Should Care
• Chinese Fishing Fleets Are Depleting The World’s Oceans
• 5 Reasons You Should Be Worried About Super Trawlers
• 10 Alarming Facts About Overfishing

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