NE seal row

[Mark R]

http://www.banffshire-journal.co.uk/New ... 042013.htm

[Dave Thomas]

ah - that sort of seal .......

[Mike Mayberry]

I thought seals were protected throughout the UK?

[Kayaks'N'Beer]

As the ‘Journal’ went to press, it appeared that Mr Ellington is entitled to ban Usan Fisheries employees from shooting seals from his land, and the company’s marksmen cannot, under the terms of the company’s licence, shoot seals from boats.

RESULT!! The stench of those damn battery farms is bad enough, without them adding a seal cull in for good measure. It'll be a tiny dribble of piss in a big pool, tho, those things are everywhere these days and there's too few Ellingtons out there.

[lg18]

Just for the record Usan Fisheries do not farm salmon, they are one of the very few companies that still net wild salmon, generally near the mouth of salmon rivers in the NE. I have heard anti-seal "pingers" from some salmon nets (no idea if they were owned by Usan or not). I bought a delicious wild salmon from them once (before later seeing on the MCS website that wild Atlantic salmon were not deemed sustainable - but the latest news is that some are, now, depending on the river, see latest MCS ratings http://www.fish2fork.com/en-GB/news-ind ... anges.aspx )
Seals are not fully protected in the UK - they can be shot under license if they are deemed a "threat" or damaging to "fisheries" including fish farms, but there is no requirement for companies to record what they shoot. Various estimates from 100s to several 1000's per year killed in the UK, but noone knows what's correct. Cormorants and goosanders can be shot to protect river fisheries (e.g. Salmon) too - I doubt shooting seals and avian wildlife is taken into account by the MCS in deciding which salmon is ok to eat...

[Kayaks'N'Beer]

My fondness for seals is bordering on irrational whilst my misanthropy knows no limits so the thought of people shooting seals for any reason makes my rage gland fill up to bursting. Kinda ironic, I guess, given than my favourite hobby originated as a seal hunting platform.

[Ian_Montrose]

As the ‘Journal’ went to press, it appeared that Mr Ellington is entitled to ban Usan Fisheries employees from shooting seals from his land, and the company’s marksmen cannot, under the terms of the company’s licence, shoot seals from boats.

RESULT!! The stench of those damn battery farms is bad enough, without them adding a seal cull in for good measure. It'll be a tiny dribble of piss in a big pool, tho, those things are everywhere these days and there's too few Ellingtons out there.

Hmm. I may be wrong, but my understanding is that you you need to have written permission in advance to shoot on private land. If that is true, then there is no need for the landowner to issue a ban. The marksmen have already broken the law.

[Mark R]

http://www.heraldscotland.com/news/envi ... s.20862485

[lg18]

More bad news for seals, this time Shetland -
http://www.shetnews.co.uk/news/6751-alm ... er-licence

[Kayaks'N'Beer]

Licences should only be issued to shoot seals as a last resort, however government reports show that less than one in seven salmon farms has installed anti-predator nets.

Given that diving down and trashing the nets might be considered a "last resort" in the campaign to stop the cull...

[Owen]

I'm not sure what impact such things have but you could try signing this,

http://www.thepetitionsite.com/373/939/ ... seal-cull/

[Kayaks'N'Beer]

I'm not sure what impact such things have but you could try signing this,

http://www.thepetitionsite.com/373/939/ ... seal-cull/

Done. I'm kind of cynical about petitions, myself. If signing a petition about something made the slightest difference then surely we'd be living in a democracy by now, but if I don't sign then it definitely won't do anything.

[tenboats1]

Hmm. I may be wrong, but my understanding is that you you need to have written permission in advance to shoot on private land. If that is true, then there is no need for the landowner to issue a ban. The marksmen have already broken the law.[/quote]

If they have broken the law relating to firearms then can we assume that they will have their FAC revoked as a minimum, and perhaps a jail sentence to boot? Too much to hope for I guess.

[Kayaks'N'Beer]

Hmm. I may be wrong, but my understanding is that you you need to have written permission in advance to shoot on private land. If that is true, then there is no need for the landowner to issue a ban. The marksmen have already broken the law.

If they have broken the law relating to firearms then can we assume that they will have their FAC revoked as a minimum, and perhaps a jail sentence to boot? Too much to hope for I guess.

They're a large company with enough financial clout not to be subject to such petty regulations. They'll get a slap on the wrists if that.

[lg18]

An update on the NE Scotland seal-shooting row (the wild salmon netters say they're not going to kill seals any more!):
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-n ... d-27109912

Lucy

[Kayaks'N'Beer]

Result! I have a pretty cynical view of activism in general. It's nice to be proven wrong, once in a while.

[lg18]

More seal shooting in the news today. And the seal shooting winners are.... Shetland salmon farmers!

http://www.shetnews.co.uk/news/11321-sh ... oting-list

And it seems that killing wildilfe is not even the tip of the iceberg of environmental misadventure for salmon farming:
http://www.puresalmon.org/issues.html
http://www.gaaia.org/salmon-pharming

Lucy

[PeterG]

Then there was the mysterious disappearance of all the seals in Loch Etive after they changed from mussel farming to fish farming above Bonawe. I asked a local and he said the seals had simply moved away....