7. Fleet Dispersal Plans 



It is likely that the Danish fleet will be slowly 

 reduced in the next few years and that Danish 

 importers will increasingly turn to foreign suppliers 

 (including the Russians) for sources of fish. Trade, 

 not fleet dispersal, appears to hold the key to 

 Denmark's future in fisheries. Denmark is expected 

 to reduce its fleet gradually.'" This will mostly 

 impact the small vessels that comprise the bulk of the 

 fleet. The opportunities for improved quotas in the 

 North Sea and in the area off Denmark are not good. 

 EC authorities have suggested that reductions of up to 

 40 percent may be necessary to rebuild overfished 

 whitefish stocks. Some Danish fishermen have 

 sought opportunities to fish in distant ports as part of 

 the EC program to open up access throughout the 

 world. It is unlikely, however, that this will be a 

 trend in the future. 



Despite the authors view that Danish fishermen 

 are unlikely to seek opportunties to fish in distant 

 waters, it should be noted, that at least 10 Danish 

 fishermen were involved in an attempt to evade tough 

 Danish regulations governing the harvest of wild 

 Atlantic salmon by reflagging their vessels in 

 Panama.^^ One of the vessels was the Onkel Sam 

 (109.30-GRT and built in 1985). The vessel was 

 decommissioned by the EC on July 19, 1988. The 

 owner of the Onkel Sam registered the ship in 

 Panama which is not a party to the North Atlantic 

 Salmon Conservation Organization (NASCO). 

 Deimiark, together with many other North Atlantic 

 countries, belongs to NASCO and abides by the 

 regulations designed to conserve and protect stocks of 

 wild salmon. Panama was not a member of NASCO, 

 and thus Panamanian-flag vessels could legally fish 

 for wild Atlantic salmon on the high-seas.^' Danish 

 authorities seized the Onkel Sam in March 1990, 

 when it stopped at the port of Hirtshals enroute to 

 Poland." Denmark acted because the NASCO 

 convention prohibits the transportation or landing of 

 wild Atlantic salmon by member states.'* The Onkel 

 Sam was carrying 20 tons of Atlantic salmon when it 

 was seized." An investigation into the case was 

 referred to EC courts and is currently being 

 considered by Danish courts.^" Additional 

 investigations implicated 6 to 10 Danish fishermen 

 who were fined for similar illegal fishing." The 

 loophole that allowed some vessels to legally fish for 

 Atlantic salmon was closed when the Government of 



Panama restricted fishing for salmon by vessels flying 

 the Panamanian flag.^^ 



The Danish Government's record of compliance 

 with EC and other international bodies has, of 

 course, nothing to do with the activities of a few 

 individuals. The attempt to harvest Atlantic salmon 

 is an example of a few fishermen facing bankruptcy 

 who exploited other means of generating income. 

 The impact of the activities by a few individuals has 

 had only a minimal impact on the Danish fishing 

 fleet. The involvement of a few Danish fishermen in 

 reflagging or illegal salmon fishing was difficult for 

 the Danish Government, which prides itself on its 

 record of compliance with the EC, NASCO, and 

 other international bodies. The prompt action by the 

 Danish Government to investigate and prosecute these 

 cases, and to impose fines or penalties, demonstrates 

 Denmark's continued adherence to international 

 principles governing the conservation of living marine 

 resources. 



SOURCES 



"Danish shipyards rely on exports," Fishing News 

 International, January 1989. 



"Denmark: European leader in fishing," Special 

 Danemark, Le Marin, May 1992, p. 7. 



Eurofish Report, various issues. 



Fiskeriministeriet, Yearbook of fishery statistics, 

 Denmark, 1991, Danish Ministry of Fisheries, 

 Copenhagen, January 1993. 



Folsom, William, B. Danish Fisheries, 1988, 

 International Fisheries Report (IFR-89/89), 

 Office of International Affairs, National Marine 

 Fisheries Service, NOAA, U.S. Department of 

 Commerce, September 29, 1989. 



Hansen, Soren. Senior Economic Specialist, U.S. 

 Embassy, Copenhagen, Denmark fax message 

 dated August 10, 1993 and other reports. 



Hulgaard, Erling. Danish Ministry of Fisheries, letter 

 dated June 10, 1993. 



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