Fisheries and climate change: opinions from the wild capture fishing sector

6 Conclusions

This document summarises the responses of wild capture fisheries stakeholders in Scotland to a survey conducted during COP26. In total, 66 respondents participated, from a range of backgrounds although industry representatives made up the majority of responses (59.1%).

There is strong engagement and recognition of the issues on the topic of climate change, including the emissions of greenhouse gases from the industry's activities and the need to adapt to the impacts of climate change.

Key themes emerging relate to innovation in fuels, propulsion and gears to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, the shared responsibility across industry, government and research communities to support the sector, and the interaction between bottom-contacting fishing gears and natural carbon stores.