French fishermen fear being excluded from English waters

“We’re grabbing our playground.” Since March, trawling has been prohibited in certain English waters, off Hauts-de-France. An ecological measure for the British but considered "protectionist" by French fishermen, who call on Europe to intervene to protect them. On board his twenty-meter trawler moored in the port of Boulogne-sur-Mer, Donovan Leprêtre points out on his maps the 13 protected marine zones (4,000 km2) where fishing has been prohibited since March 22. “It was a big part of our turnover, 35 to 40%,” breathes the fisherman. “We have to fall back on other areas, but where? We’re going to find ourselves in a small circle going around in circles,” he curses from his cockpit, seagull cries in the background. The decision by the British Marine Management Organization, intended to protect marine species and habitats, concerns fishermen of all nationalities. 5 million euros per year But according to the thirty-year-old, it is a way for the British to "reclaim their waters" by ...