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Improving the Competitiveness of Portuguese Fisheries and the Livelihood of Coastal Communities
The fishing industry has long defined the livelihoods and economies of coastal communities in Portugal, with approximately 90% of the industry comprised of small to medium-sized (SME) fisheries.
However, the increased investment in automation and new digital technologies by large scale fisheries has placed SME fisheries at risk, making them less efficient and thus less effective. Not only do SME fisheries have limited financial resources to invest in the development and implementation of emerging technologies but, they lack the ability to access the necessary competences, further increasing the gap between SME fisheries and large fishing operations. This is further compounded by the increasing threat of ocean litter and unsustainable fishing practices, jeopardizing the future livelihood of coastal communities as profits and opportunities dwindle.
With this in mind and in line with the EEA and Norway Grants Blue Growth Programme, “Increased value creation and sustainable growth”, the PELADRONE project aims to tackle three main challenges:
Decreasing competitiveness and sustainability of Portuguese SME fisheries
Increasingly threatened Portuguese marine ecosystems
Future livelihood of Portuguese coastal communities at great risk
Decreasing Competitiveness and Sustainability of Portuguese SME Fisheries
With the rapid decline in competitiveness experienced by SME fisheries, increasing doubt builds around their future. Whereas large fishing operations can reap benefits from automated processes and economies of scale, SME fisheries SME fisheries spend considerable fuel and resources merely searching for the catch.
At present SME fisheries in pelagic areas spend, on average, 45% of their time searching for fish. Today’s fishing vessel sonar systems are not only disrupted by noisy engines, which lead to inaccurate readings, but have a mere reach of 3 kilometres forcing a vessel to sweep vast areas of the sea before finding a potential catch. Once located, quality and bycatch are difficult to determine and thus fisheries must spend resources on bringing up a catch potentially inefficient and poor catches.
Furthermore, as fish stocks continue to decline, search time at sea will rise as fish become harder to locate, thereby putting fishing boats and their crews at risk due to more hours at sea and potentially dangerous conditions.
The PELADRONE Project consequently aims to develop and implement a drone-based reconnaissance solution for Portuguese SME fisheries to more efficiently locate, track, and catch pelagic fish. The PELADRONE service is based upon patented technology (Birdview AS) presently used by Norwegian fishing fleets which will be adapted to Portuguese conditions and small-scale fishing fleets.
Increasingly Threatened Portuguese Marine Ecosystems
Marine litter poses one of the greatest threats to the river and marine ecosystems, animal and human health, and related socio-economic activities. To the fisheries industry alone, the cost of marine litter has been estimated at €60 million, equating to 1% of total EU revenues from fisheries in 2010.
One of the consequences of extensive ocean litter is that the biomass of fish, has fallen to record low levels (IPMA research). Sardines, for example, one of the primary fish catches of Peniche, has seen stocks fall by 79% in less than 10 years, further jeopardizing the livelihood of SME fisheries.
The negative economic impact of marine litter on SME fisheries and tourism in coastal communities has been well acknowledged, and considerable efforts are being made to clean the ocean. The main focus has been on marine litter that has washed on land or to prevent litter from entering the ocean in the first place. However, studies show that 80-90% of ocean litter rests on the seabed, and the fishing industry generates around 50% of the ocean litter. The resulting environmental degradation and the myriad of negative impacts on marine ecosystems and fish are alarming. Ghost nets are increasingly trapping fish on the open seabed while junk, from cars to refrigerators, in harbours keep fish from spawning.
Today there is minimal knowledge on the extent, location, and type of marine waste in pelagic fishing areas – especially when it comes to sub-surface waste. The fact that there is such little documented knowledge on the location and extent of marine litter in pelagic fishing areas translates into a lack of management options and solutions for businesses and politicians. Further, the actual impact that marine litter has on fish habitats and fish productivity, marine ecosystems, and human health and recreation are not well understood.
All such factors impact the regional growth and well-being of SME fisheries and coastal communities and the capacity to manage the environmental problem and to find long-lasting and incentivizing solutions to remove marine litter.
Future Livelihood of Portuguese Coastal Communities at Great Risk
As the competitiveness of SME fisheries falls and marine ecosystems become increasingly threatened due to ocean litter and unsustainable fishing practices, the future livelihood of coastal communities is at great risk. A decline in the SME fishery industry has already led to reduced profits and employment opportunities. For example, the fishing workforce in Peniche, a port city of 16,000 residents in central Portugal, has decreased from around 4000 just some years ago to only around 600 today.
Research has shown that coastal communities suffer higher rates of unemployment, lower profits and wages, lower rates of new business establishment, and a lag in digitization. Furthermore, coastal communities do not attract investment and do not have access to political power to explore new opportunities.
The decline in the SME fishing industry is leading to further negative social impacts in coastal communities. Local ship owners in Peniche, for example, do not want family members to enter the industry and instead to focus on higher education for employment in other industries.
In 2010, 60% of crew members were technically retired. An increase in shipbuilding in Peniche was observed in 2010, but small shipyards have since disappeared, including the loss of shipping knowledge and skills. As such, younger generations cannot find opportunities in the fishing industry and choose instead to migrate to Lisbon, Porto, or Coimbra or even abroad to study or search for work leaving older generations and sixty percent of properties vacant.
As the passing of traditions ceases, there is a loss of communal identity, and the brain-drain puts SME fishing and boating knowledge at risk.
Efforts to revive coastal areas in Portugal tend to view tourism as the solution to economic growth and job creation. However, tourism does not improve a region's underlying economic resiliency. For example, real estate prices for second homes and holiday rentals rise, making them unaffordable to local residents, and jobs tend to be low-skilled, low paid, and highly seasonal. This leads to a transient and seasonal workforce that does little to build the skill base of a coastal community.
Furthermore, highly seasonal tourism decreases the level of local services for year-round residents during the off-season in critical areas such as health and social care. Tourism growth also carries risks due to the negative environmental impacts of mass tourism and the threats it brings to regional identity and the culture of coastal communities. Finally, while the EU has made great leaps within digital transformation, tourism does little to narrow the digital divide between urban and rural areas, and coastal areas such as Peniche lag considerably behind most EU regions due to limited digitization activity.