November 23, 2015 — An environmental giant has hit back after being accused of making “misleading and untrue” statements about the fishing industry in order to influence policy-makers.
Pew Charitable Trusts insists there is still a major problem with over-fishing in EU waters, pointing to recent data showing mortality rates are above the levels required by the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP).
But industry body Europeche, which last week published an open letter attacking Pew over a controversial report – Turning the Tide: Ending Over-fishing in North Western Europe – says the pressure group’s response has failed to address the issues it raised.
Pew’s report claimed fishing in north-west Europe had expanded rapidly in recent decades, and that calls by scientists and environmentalists to reduce it had been ignored. It also said many of the region’s fish stocks had collapsed.