He is happy to have ” got “ a commitment in favor of French fishermen, when associations and scientists accuse him of ” lies “ and D’“instrumentalization”. The visit to Brussels on Sunday 2 April by the Secretary of State for the Sea, Hervé Berville, regarding the authorization of trawling in marine protected areas, provoked contrasting reactions.
It comes after weeks of tension. Since the beginning of March, Hervé Berville has constantly repeated his fierce opposition to the action plan “for sustainable and resilient fishing” of the European Commission. This document, presented at the end of February, aims to implement the European Union’s (EU) biodiversity strategy and its commitment to “protect legally and effectively” 30% of the seas. Among the recommended measures is the phasing out by 2030 of mobile bottom gear, such as trawls, dredges, longlines or pots, in all protected areas.
From March 8 before the Senate, Hervé Berville made it known that the government was “totally, clearly and firmly” opposed to this proposal. ” Literally, this plan would condemn French artisanal fishing and lead it to disappear. Not in ten years, tomorrow, he said on March 15 before the National Assembly. If this plan [est] adopted, […] I am going to see all the scallop fishermen in Port-en-Bessin in 2024 and I tell them that they must stop their activity because it will be a problem for the marine habitat. »
“A big mess”
On Sunday, it was as far as Brussels, where he met the European Commissioner for the Environment Virginijus Sinkevicius, in the company of a delegation of fishermen, that the Secretary of State went to carry “the voice of France”. At the end of this meeting, he rejoiced, in a press releasehaving ” obtained confirmation that a ban on mobile bottom gears in marine protected areas would not be imposed on Member States”. Satisfied, the national fisheries committee announced on Monday that it had ended its protest movement that began ten days ago.
Nature protection associations and scientists, on the contrary, criticize the attitude and words of Hervé Berville. The Bloom association denounced the publication of a “triumphant statement to pose as the hero of fishermen” while“no imminent threat ” weighed on the sector. Didier Gascuel, director of the halieutic pole of the Agro Institute of Rennes, also deplores “a big mess”. “Mr. Berville heated the troops by scaring people and saying that Europe wanted the death of fishing”he regrets.
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