Is hake's remarkable recovery in the Atlantic a sign of hope for our oceans?

euronews (in English)

The hake population in the waters of Northwestern Europe has recovered spectacularly over the past 20 years. What's behind this remarkable rebound and how might this success story be repeated elsewhere?

Transcript

00:00It's 2 a.m. in Galicia on Spain's Atlantic coast.

00:05This crew at Salero's fishing port have been working throughout the night.

00:09They're unloading crates from a vessel full of catch after a week on the Celtic Sea.

00:13These boxes are filled with hake that can be distinguished by their elongated bodies

00:17and slim pelvic fins.

00:19This silver-bellied fish is the backbone of the local fishing economy.

00:34It's hard to imagine now, but not so long ago, this all-important species almost disappeared

00:39from the Atlantic Ocean, only for stocks to rebound later, stronger than ever.

00:44In the waters of the northwestern Europe, the hake population has bounced back impressively

00:49over the past two decades.

00:52But what's behind this remarkable recovery?

00:55And why do we rarely see such success stories repeated elsewhere?

01:04The unloaded hake quickly goes to auction.

01:07The fish are large and undamaged thanks to selective fishing gear.

01:15Minimising harm to the hake population is paramount, and a bigger priority than ever

01:19before.

01:20Marine scientist Javier López leads the Sustainable Fisheries Campaign at Oceana, a conservation

01:27advocacy organisation.

01:30In the 1980s and 1990s, the Atlantic hake was subject to a strong over-exploitation,

01:40which caused a drastic drop in abundance.

01:44The hake was very close to having a critical and collapsing situation.

01:48This really has not only implications for the environment, for the state of the population,

01:51but there is also a human factor behind it.

01:53That is, many of the fishermen and coastal communities that depend on this resource

01:57If hake were to disappear, it would also be a big loss for local chefs.

02:09Hake is a member of the cod family and is everywhere in Galicia and a favourite throughout

02:14Spain.

02:15Its tender, flaky fillets pair beautifully with dishes like roasted vegetables or fried

02:20mollusks.

02:25You can bet your bottom dollar that you will find hake on the menu of almost every seafood

02:30restaurant in Spain.

02:44So how do people here in Galicia and across Europe's northwestern coast manage to have

02:49their hake and eat it too?

02:51The answer lies in timely conservation measures and a bit of luck.

02:55Let's take a closer look.

03:03European hake is widely distributed over the shelf of the northeast Atlantic Ocean.

03:08In the 1990s, overfishing reduced numbers to well below sustainable levels.

03:12Scientists who observed the decline raised the alarm and warned that the northern hake

03:17could disappear.

03:18In response, the European Union took decisive steps in the early 2000s.

03:23They established strict catch limits based on scientific advice, increased the size of

03:28fishing net meshes to allow young hake to escape, and created two large protected areas

03:33for the little ones to grow.

03:35Fortunately, sea conditions were favourable, which also played a big role.

03:40These efforts paid off.

03:42The northern hake population surged to unprecedented levels.

03:45This rebound allowed for a gradual increase in catch quotas so that hake could be fished

03:50sustainably.

03:51The same method could be applied to other species in decline.

03:58López says the key is to set concrete long-term recovery goals, enforce measures and stick

04:04to them.

04:05Local fishermen face many challenges in the current climate, from low market prices to

04:32stiff competition from cheap imports, but they're happy with the health of the hake

04:37stock.

04:38The restrictions in the past seem worthwhile.

05:10While Atlantic hake is now sustainably fished, Mediterranean stocks are in a precarious state.

05:26Let's move from Galicia to Mallorca.

05:28According to a recent European Commission report, Mediterranean hake numbers would need

05:32to increase tenfold to reach sustainable levels.

05:36Beatrice Jaro leads fishery stock assessments in this region and says the hake situation

05:42has been sustained unsustainably.

05:44The underwater terrain seems to have helped some hake-of-age trawlers enabling their survival.

06:11The Mediterranean is diverse and complex, making hake recovery a long-term challenge.

06:17Area closures, the use of more selective gear and efforts to regulate the number of fishing

06:22days were enforced here, 20 years after measures in the Atlantic.

06:27And it's still too early to assess the outcomes.

06:31At the port of Alcudia, Ocean met with the captain of a bottom trawler who had just returned

06:36from a day at sea.

06:38Hake makes up only a small fraction of this vessel's mixed catch.

06:41The captain admitted that the fishing sector resisted the restrictions at first, but now

06:46he says they are justified, even though he is limited to fishing just four days a week.

07:06Today Mediterranean hake numbers are slowly rising, but López warns that the species

07:10remain vulnerable and numbers could drop.

07:13But with the right measures in place, there is a strong chance for recovery.

07:44The state of our oceans is in many ways alarming, however, hake's resilience in the Mediterranean

07:49and its remarkable rebound in the Atlantic offer hope.

07:53The question is, could we use what we've learned to bring back more marine species?

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