Fishermen v Big Wind: A David and Goliath story
Commercial fishing is a tiny contributor to the UK economy. In 2023, UK vessels landed approximately 719,000 tonnes of sea fish with a value of £1.1 billion. It amounts to around 0.03% of total economic output and around 5% of the broader agriculture, forestry and fishing sector. Compare this with UK offshore wind, with its 15 GW of installed capacity and current GVA per GW installed of around £1.8 billion and rising. David is small, semi-nomadic and works across a vast sea area; Goliath is massive and growing rapidly. Whilst Big Wind occupies clearly defined areas, it overlaps massively into traditional fishing grounds and is becoming a major UK employer. The fishing industry eventually learned to live with Big Oil, which is now on the wane, but living with territory-guzzling offshore wind farms – fixed and floating – may prove a lot more challenging. Fishing feels threatened. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 10:45
Leave a Reply