No outright ban on deep sea fishing

FRENCH environmental campaigners say they are disappointed after the European Parliament voted against imposing a total ban on deep-sea trawling.

The Socialist and UMP party are both in favour of avoiding an outright ban, with the fisheries minister Frédéric Cuvillier forecasting that 500 jobs in France would be at risk.

The figure rises to 3,000 according to Scapêche, the association of fresh-water fishermen, which operates six trawlers for the supermarket chain Intermarché.

Deep-sea trawling involves heavy nets dragged on the ocean floor at depths of more than 600m.

Campaigners say it is damaging and indiscriminate - scooping up numerous species that have no commercial value and are then discarded.

The parliament agreed to restrict some of the worst excesses of the practice, for example in slow-growing corals. Euro MPs also voted for a review of the equipment used in deep-sea fishing.

The vote drew unusual media attention for a fisheries issue, with an online campaign tied to a comic strip by French illustrator Pénélope Bagieu attracting nearly 750,000 signatures opposing the industry.

Ecology campaign group Bloom said the vote against a total ban was "deplorable" and goes against scientific consensus.