Fishermen: - The shark population should be reduced

The majority of the municipal council of Avannaata Municipality believes that sharks pose a serious obstacle to the halibut fishery. Therefore, the municipal council decided in February to allocate a total of 300,000 kroner to reduce the number of sharks in the fishery.

The scheme involved catching 1,000 sharks and selling each heart to the municipality for 300 kroner. The Committee for Fisheries, Hunting and Agriculture in Inatsisartut supported the project, as it believes that opportunities should be investigated to produce shark for dog food and human consumption.

However, according to the Department of Fisheries, Hunting and Agriculture, there is no legal basis for reducing the population of sharks, and therefore Avannaata Kommunia has stopped the project. The environmental organization Oceans North Kalaallit Nunaat (ONKN) criticizes the project, among other things, for threatening the shark population and damaging Greenland's reputation.

However, the fishermen still believe that the population should be reduced.

The point of view has not changed

The desire to reduce the number of sharks came from the fishing and hunting association in Kullorsuaq. Against this background, the chairman of the municipal council's Fishing and Hunting Committee in Avannaata Kommunia, Ole Møller from Naleraq, put forward an item for consideration.

But when it turned out that there was no legal basis to eradicate the large sharks, the case was dropped by the municipality, Ole Møller says.

- Such statements from both Oceans North and the department do not change my opinion that there is a need to limit the population of sharks. The sea around Greenland is full of sharks, and with only 300,000 kroner you cannot eradicate the shark population.

- There have been successful attempts to reduce the number of sharks in the past, but this has not led to extinction. The proposal is solely aimed at reducing the population in the fishing areas.

- It is unacceptable to say that you cannot reduce the number of sharks, he says.

Ole Møller lives in Uummannaq and has been a fisherman for many years.

Unacceptable

In addition to being chairman of the fishing and hunting association in Qaqortoq, Jens Peter Kielsen is also vice-chairman of the Greenland Fishing and Hunting Association, KNAPK.

He says that sharks are a major problem for coastal fishing in South Greenland. The vice-chairman believes that it is unacceptable that legal obstacles stand in the way of efforts to reduce the population.

Climate change has hit fishermen hard, and in addition, large sharks have destroyed valuable fishing gear.

- That's why we get very angry when organizations like Oceans North start criticizing the conditions and wishes of the fishermen. Avannaata Municipality's efforts to reduce the number of sharks should be supported. We have the same wish in Kujalleq Municipality, says Jens Peter Kielsen.

He also believes that the idea of ​​producing dog food and human food from sharks to keep the population down is sensible.