“This is of course very positive news. This is the best news we’ve had in a long time,” says Fridrik J. Arngrimsson, managing director of LIU (The Federation of Icelandic Fishing Vessel Owners). His joy is closely related to the results of the newest Icelandic Marine Research Institute survey, which gives a brighter outlook for cod stocks than had been expected.
MBL.is reports that the cod stock is now higher than at any time since detailed surveys began in 1996; and a full 10 percent higher than in both 1998 and 2004.
Ideally LIU would like an increase in the cod fishing quota to take into account the new scientific information, and Minister of Fisheries Einar K. Gudfinnsson has been lobbied to that effect. It is not yet known what the minister will decide.
The Icelandic government is known for its cautiousness when setting fishing quotas and Icelandic fishing stocks are widely held to be in better condition than elsewhere in Europe and North America.
While the fishermen are now lobbying for a quota increase, even they favour a cautious approach: “This (new survey result) does not mean that the cod stock is as big as we would like to see it. We of course need to build it up further. This is an ongoing and continuous job,” Arngrimsson says.
The news comes barely a week after the discovery of an illness affecting both herring and haddock in Icelandic waters.
Up to half the herring catch may be infected with the parasite, and there has been some debate as to whether affected herring may be unsuitable for human consumption. The parasite often kills herring and is a periodic natural visitor to Icelandic waters.
Haddock are rarely killed by the parasite and remain fit for human consumption. The illness can be expected to pass again within two or three years.
Of course the Cod quota WILL increase.
Fish is for export and we need foreign currencies badly.
Now if the marine research say stocks are up , what is the reason for not increasing?
Einar is a killer… pro-hunter.
1st whales now more cod….
Hopefully next year we can return to clubbing seals too!!!
@Fishy
Congratulations on being the first to leap in with another of your crass, humourless, poorly-worded and gramatically incorrect comments. It seems that no news item is complete without the addition of your ignorant opinions.
The reason for not catching more fish is to allow fish stocks to build up to the point at which they are more sustainable. As fish breed, it’s like compound interest: If you add 10% to your savings this year, the next year you get the equivalent of 11% interest. I guess it’s not a concept you will be familiar with. A little patience with nature, allowing fish to reproduce, will allow stocks to recover quicker in the long run. The reason the quota was cut in the first place was because in 2007, cod stocks were at their lowest *ever* due to over-fishing.
But I guess that sort of thinking never swims into your fishy head, much like your grasp of other finance related issues.
Iceland doesn’t “need” foreign currency. It’s just been granted an $11bn loan, compared to the $200m generated by the fishing industry. Catching a few more fish and depleting the stocks again is not going to turn the tide. When is the concept of short-term greed going to hit home ? What Iceland needs is real innovation, technology and industry which could come through foreign investment, if only it had a free-floating currency.
It already turns out that Iceland illegally caught no less than 5x its quota of mackerel, 100,000 tonnes, no less, claiming a variety of excuses including “it happened by accident” and “we don’t have to respect the agreement” (does that remind you of something else..?). The amount is almost the same amount as the entire cod quota. (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/scotland/7720234.stm)
But don’t take my word for it. If you want a real expose on over-fishing read a book called “The End of the Line: How Over-fishing is Changing the World and What We Eat”.
And whaling. Well, tourism is one of Iceland’s few remaining likely growth industries for 2009. If you really want to knock that one on the head too, announce an increase in whaling. Whatever the environmental rights or wrongs of whaling really are, global public opinion is dead against it. A Gallup poll showed strong anti-whaling sentiment in the USA, UK, Germany and a number of other countries that represent Iceland’s tourism base.
I bet one could show that the amount of revenue lost to the country through decreased tourism is far greater than the amount of revenue generated by whale meat sales.
@Julia Set (and everyone else)
We would remind you that personal attacks are not acceptable in comments. We approved your comment here because it is interesting and well-considered; but try not to be so nasty to poor Fishy in the future!
Many thanks
IceNews Team
@Alex.
Couldn’t agree more and it’s surprising to see a post referring to a Minister as a “killer”. That’s pretty personal as attacks go.
It seems that Einar Gudfinnsson has been rather brave in standing up for tough and unpopular quota reductions in favour of long term thinking. Let us hope that he maintains the courage of his convictions to stick to this and not let Iceland abandon sustainability as a quick fix for its economic problems.
Julia Set
>>> “I bet one could show that the amount of revenue lost to the country through decreased tourism is far greater than the amount of revenue generated by whale meat sales.”
You are absolutely right. There is an official study released in 2006, proven exactly that.
But once more the Government don’t give importance to advises or recent studies, like with many other issues…
Julia Set
Sorry i am a little busy today but i will get back to you soon.
All my love… Fishy!!!
p.s For your further reading regarding icelands fisheries try http://www.fisheries.is/
Julia Set said:
“Iceland doesn’t “need” foreign currency. It’s just been granted an $11bn loan, compared to the $200m generated by the fishing industry”
=====================================
It is quite astonishing to state Iceland does not need Foreign currency at present. It is a fundamental to have a healthy trade balance no matter what type of float.
Btw, fish exports earn over $2bn in foreign currency.
A mere 10 times more than your calculation.
===================================================
Julia Set said: “What Iceland needs is real innovation, technology and industry which could come through foreign investment, if only it had a free-floating currency.”
===================================================Any examples? Jamaica?
Sounds like the repetition of the proven failed mantras of macro economics.
A “could” followed by an “if only”.
With a healthy trade balance and regulated Government budget, the evidence points to the benefits of a controlled float over a free float.
I don’t have the confidence that you are aware of the effects that a free unrestricted float would have.
@Knowless, perhaps it wasn’t very clear but I didn’t mean that Iceland doesn’t need *any* foreign currency, that would be ridiculous. What I was trying to point out is how much it would be *changed* by ,say, a 10% *increase* in fishing, which of $2bn would correspond to only about a $200m annual increase in trade income, compared to other factors, such as an $11bn foreign loan. It seems that to increase fishing as a short term boost to foreign currency income therefore would have a rather small economic effect, but a major effect in reversing the recovery of fish stocks, which had fallen to an all time low. Might there then not be more long term gain by sticking with sustainability.
Regarding foreign investment, your comparison with Jamaica is puzzling and two conditionals in a sentence don’t make a “failed mantra” if one depends upon the other. In recent months, many international equity investors have stated interest in Iceland in the press, but it seems unlikely that they would invest at an unrealistic krona rate. Fishing and tourism, surely, will always be limited growth possibilities, and the aluminium industry suddenly looks less rosy now that electricity and aluminium prices have dropped elsewhere.
Given the tight restrictions, has there really been even a “controlled float” yet ? It’s hard to see that. Most observers on these pages seem to share this view that float right now seems to be one where only those who are absolutely forced to exchange currency do so while the rest of the world sits quietly back to wait for reality to step in.
It would be interesting to hear what you think would happen if there was an unrestricted float.
Julia Set said:
“It would be interesting to hear what you think would happen if there was an unrestricted float”
More or less I asked you first, you have been an advocate of the unrestricted float, I have no confidence that you understand the implications of the drawbacks for the Icelandic nation.
“many international equity investors have stated interest in Iceland in the press, but it seems unlikely that they would invest at an unrealistic krona rate.”
Seems?
Are they even investing in countries which have a realistic exchange rate?
“Regarding foreign investment, your comparison with Jamaica is puzzling”
Why puzzling? you have not offered any examples of how your – attracting equity investment “could” work, followed by an “if only” there was a free float – has worked anywhere.
Jamaica is a reasonable example of an indebted Island economy but with resources.
A country forced to take IMF loans, forced to drop tariffs as a condition.
Free trade industry zones, aka sweat shops /cheap imported labour.
Local farmers devastated by cheap imports, persistent attacks on its banana export privileges to the UK by Del Monte etc.
http://www.normangirvan.info/wp-content/uploads/2007/09/a-comment-on-the-jamaican-economy-since-independence-jan-07.pdf
Full free float of its currency backed by foreign currency loans.
some quotes
Jamaica did with disastrous consequences of the financial neo-liberalization of 1990 in ‘terms of devaluations,inflation, business failures, bail-outs, fiscal deficits and steep increase in debt burden’
‘The reasoning was that Jamaica’s heavy foreign indebtedness; weak foreign earnings capacity and fiscal situation could not support afloat of the currency’
‘currency liberalization was the best policy (and this is still debatable), it should have been carefully sequenced; and accompanied or preceded by a carefully designed and properly implemented regulatory regime.’
As I wrote, the sound counsel, the rational economic appraisals, point to a controlled float of the kronur as being the least harmful to the nation.
@Julia Set said
@Fishy
Congratulations on being the first to leap in with another of your crass, humourless, poorly-worded and gramatically incorrect comments. It seems that no news item is complete without the addition of your ignorant opinions
Thankyou i could not agree with you more!
my intention is to be direct and provoke…
Ok, Julia, A little about myself.
I finished my education at 16 and started working in the fish industry some 25years ago.
For the last 20years i have filleted fish by hand. The reason for hand filleting is to get much higher yeild and quality fillets from the fish.
So if in 20years i have done my job very well and lets say getting 5-8% better yeild than machine filleting, i Think i have helped get more food from less fish.
I get payed well for my work and would say my salary, which is payed only on a bonus system is about twice the national average.
When i finish a days work , i get home tired,aching and smelly! …Am i complaining?…NO..This is just a sign that ive done a hard honest days work to support my family and myself.
O.k enough about me back to the issue!
When i said -There WILL be a quota increase , i think it is probable that there will be at a LOW level maybe 5-10000 ton which would be at a substainable level.
Also much of the changes in fish stocks is due to environmental changes , global warming changing water temperatures.NOT only over fishing.
Haddock stocks now are at a record high for many years.Prawn and shrimp stocks are at a alltime low, overfishing? partly, but also because HIGH fish stocks have consumed a lot of shrimp!
As for the Whales- Iceland has recently fished very SMALL numbers of Fin Whale , i think 7 and Mink Whale which is a very small whale around 40. I think this is VERY substainable, Nations such as Japan and Norway hunt whales into 1000s.
I do actually agree with the points made that Whale watching tourism generates much more money than whale fishing , and that Iceland hunting whales is adverse to tourism.
The point i am making is there is a market for whale meat and Iceland is hunting whales very cautiously and NOT exploiting it.
The seal comment was just me being controvesial , A typical Fishy No Bainer !!
The mackrel incident that you made reference to.
The boats were actually trying to fish for herrings NOT mackrel . Mackrel is NOT usually found in great quantities in Icelandic waters. I think they are putting this down to changes in water temp that the mackerel came this year.
I could now say a lot of things about British and EU handling their fish stocks policies VERY BADLY .
Its open for discussion!
On the whole i think- Iceland has handled our fish quotas very well. I have the upmost respect for Einar K , I think he is the best fisheries minister we have had here for a long time . I also have a very high respect for our marine science research who supply very precise information.
Maybe I hope i have restored a litle bit of personal credit for ALL i may of offended in the past!!!
Cheers Fishy….
Hey Fishy.
Welcome back. There is no need for you to prostrate yourself.
I’m happy to still have the invitation for a fish supper (hand filleted by yourself, of course).
Yes, your style is provocative, and could be seen as offensive, but I have learned that it is through passion – not trolling.
You clearly hit Julia Set’s ‘go button’ and I hope matters are resolved.
We all have an interest in events with differing aspects, but through these forums, and indeed such crises – we may ultimately respect and understand each other better in future (nominations for Nobel peace prize welcomed).
Why are people attacking this FISHY person he makes a lot of good points and is obviously a good worker and thinks of his family..
It wouldn´t surprise me if most of you who write these comments are just sat in your office jobs abusing your employment,surely you are payed to do something else while at work…
@ Terry
Thanks for your post
Your not hitting on me are you?
Only joking!
Actually i think Julia,s post are often intelligent and well written .
And with a little poke from myself she again raised some good issues!
I myself respect the politics of the opposition if good isssues are raised, even if i DONT agree with them.
I often think what would it be like if all us posting here went out for a pint together?
Probably great until 5 beers in, then……
You get the picture
Thanks again Terry…… FISHY
Just a update.
The cod quota as now been increased by 30000 ton.
A link in English about cod quota increase.
If anybody is interested?
http://www.icelandreview.com/icelandreview/daily_news/?cat_id=29314&ew_0_a_id=318559