Call to ban fishing fleet fuel subsidies in bid to scrap older Scots vessels

UK fisheries are estimated to have emitted 914.4. kilotons of CO2 over a one year period – the same as providing the annual energy use of over 110,000 homes.

They want work done to decarbonise the fishing fleet including removing the fuel subsidies they get and eliminating what they called "inefficient fleet structures".

It is believed this could result in greater motivation to decommission older diesel vessels and retrofit or invest in electric or hybrid vessels that generate significantly lower emissions and would rely less on subsidised fuel.

They said that Government-funded fuel subsidies have allowed many fishing fleets to travel vast distances, burning large amounts of fossil fuel to reach remote fishing grounds on the high seas.

"A significant step to enhance the decarbonisation of the UK fishing fleet is to remove current fuel subsidisation," the groups said. "This would increase fuel costs for fisheries which is expected to reduce overcapacity and actively help move UK fisheries away from fuel intensive fishing gear types such as bottom towed dredgers and trawlers, towards more low emission methods."

The groups say the Scottish Government has key role in futureproofing fisheries sector and pioneering ‘climate-smart’ fisheries with responsibility for 61% of UK seas.

They say fisheries have been largely ignored in climate negotiations, but ahead of the COP26 climate summit coming to Glasgow in November, the they are calling on all governments to show global leadership and put the sector on a sustainable footing by adopting a ‘climate-smart’ strategy.

The Shifting Gears- Achieving Climate-Smart Fisheries report outlines the urgent action required by all four UK Governments to "futureproof" the fisheries sector in order to improve its sustainability and increase the opportunity for our seas to act as a vital carbon sink.

It said the subsidies "drive fuel use, overcapacity, and fuel hungry methods of fishing".

"It distorts relative prices in favour of the most carbon-intensive fishing methods such as scallop dredging and overall reduces the incentive to reduce CO2 emissions," the report states.

"Often these subsidies determine the profitability of fishing operation. In some fisheries, this has resulted in the subsidisation of largely unsustainable fishing practices, inefficient fuel use, greater dependencies on fossil fuels and a substantial industrial carbon footprint from emissions."

Vessel operators can claim fuel relief on heavy oils used such as gas or fuel oil, as well as light oil such as petrol.

The most common gas oil used by the UK’s fishing vessels is red diesel, a type of gas oil that has been chemically marked and dyed to enable law enforcement agencies to identify it as rebated fuel which must not be used in road vehicles.

Red diesel is currently entitled to a tax rebate of 46.81 pence per litre (PPL), giving it an effective duty rate of 11.14 PPL.

The groups say this equates to an estimated 80% tax subsidy approximately.

They also want limits on bottom towed fishing gear to protect blue carbon habitats such as saltmarshes, seagrass beds, kelp forests, maerl beds and biogenic reefs within within current Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) and in key areas outside those.

Mario Ray, policy and public affairs officer at WWF Scotland said: “This report makes clear governments across all four nations must help UK fisheries to re-think practices and modernise to meet the challenge of climate change and achieving net zero.

“The ocean is the blue heart of our planet and when tackling the climate and nature crises, we ignore it at our peril. If the Scottish Government truly wants to maintain its credentials as a climate leader it must leave no stone unturned, and this includes the fisheries sector.”

Alex Kinninmonth, head of marine policy at RSPB Scotland added: “Ahead of crucial climate and nature COPs and with a Joint Fisheries Statement by all four governments of the UK due, now is the crucial moment to commit to and deliver an ambitious ‘climate-smart’ strategy to future proof our fisheries and revive our world.”

Calum Duncan, head of conservation Scotland at the Marine Conservation Society said: “As we learn more about the important role our ocean plays in locking up carbon in the seafloor, it’s also crucial for the fisheries sector to move toward net zero engine emissions and much-reduced impact on the seabed and its blue carbon stores."

Elspeth Macdonald, chief executive of the Scottish Fishermen's Federation said: "Our industry's carbon emissions are tiny in comparison to those from households and land-based transportation. Of course, as with all sectors, there is more work we can do, and indeed only today the UK Government has announced that it wants to accelerate the development of zero-emission vessels as part of its hydrogen strategy.

"This is an industry that has a proud record when it comes to innovation and the adoption of new technology, with skippers constantly evaluating how to do things better. We work with government to ensure we are protecting marine features including key carbon sinks such as maerl beds, based on a robust process underpinned by evidence. "That is the main reason that, contrary to what the NGOs allege, fish stocks in our waters are in such a healthy state, with for example the overall whitefish biomass at record high levels and catching (mortality) at an all-time low. “Our industry is committed to sustainability; indeed healthy stocks can be harvested in a much more carbon efficient way than unhealthy ones. We must not lose sight of the fact that we are producing food, and wild caught fish are a far better choice in terms of carbon footprint than other protein sources."