A vast majority of the dead dolphins, sink to the bottom of the sea. We estimate that thousands are killed every year in this way. At the centre of the problem are said to be French and Spanish trawlers, which drag funnel-shaped pelagic nets, which can be more than 100 yards wide, in search of anchovies, hake, herring, bass and other fish. Mine Collet said the number of dead dolphins seen on French beaches had increased six-fold since the introduction of pelagic nets at the end of the 1980s. They pick up everything that crosses their path, including the dolphins, which are asphyxiated because, as mammals, they need to come up to the surface to breathe every ten to 15 minutes.
Fishermen already have quotas which limit the number and type of fish they can catch lawfully.
If we have to stop them fishing altogether in some areas to allow fish stocks to recover, then we must compensate them. I propose we attempt to turn these two negatives into a positive situation. This will take time. There will be problems of course, but none of greater magnitude than those already resolved by the land farmers who have successfully turned food production into profitable, ecologically sound, sustainable businesses. First however, we must stop overfishing and the accidental slaughter of dolphins.