Press Release: A Transition to a Low Carbon Fishing Fleet: Community-Led Reports Chart a Course for a Hard-to-Decarbonize Sector

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Sarah Schumann, (401)297-6273, fisheryfriendlyclimateaction@gmail.com
Website: fisheryfriendlyclimateaction.org

January 13, 2025 – Members of the U.S. commercial fishing industry today unveiled a groundbreaking set of publications under the banner of A Transition to a Low Carbon Fishing Fleet. Led by members of the fishing industry itself, the research showcases the value of community-centered approaches to solving the climate crisis and makes the case that those most affected by climate impacts should have authorship of the solutions that define the energy transition.

Built on two years of research and engagement with fishermen across Alaska, the West Coast, and New England, the publications outline ambitious yet practical strategies and policies for positioning the fishing fleet to thrive in a low-carbon future. Vital to coastal economies and sustainable food systems, wild seafood harvest already has one of the lowest carbon footprints among protein sources and plays an essential role in national food security. But maritime clean energy solutions lag behind the innovation taking place on land, making it unclear what the future holds for this hard-to-decarbonize sector.

Putting fishermen at the helm of their own energy future

The work, first conceptualized in 2022, came about in response to a unique confluence of events. That year, record-high diesel fuel prices resulting from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine caused the highest energy burdens among the nation’s fishing fleet in over a decade and left many boats tied to the dock, foreshadowing the kind of desolation that could occur in the future if fishing vessels don’t adapt to a changing energy landscape. Around the same time, a parade of state and federal policies, including the U.S. Inflation Reduction Act and Washington state’s Climate Commitment Act, established a wealth of new funding streams to promote an economy-wide transition off of fossil fuels – but did not specifically target any energy efficiency and clean power opportunities within the commercial fishing sector.

In the two years since, five researchers with roots in the fishing community set out to fill this gap by establishing an evidence-based framework for fishing industry-led advocacy aimed towards achieving a low carbon fishing fleet. Drawing from interviews with almost 150 fishermen and over 30 supporting experts, the resulting 18-volume set synthesizes thousands of insights on the promises and pitfalls of various policy and technology pathways to a low carbon fishing fleet, thereby equipping fishermen and their partners in government and beyond with the knowledge to pursue a safe, affordable, equitable, and practical low carbon transition that puts the fishing industry at the helm of its own energy future and secures its continued contribution to American diets and coastal economies.

Working class climate leadership

The research took place through the Fishery Friendly Climate Action Campaign, a bicoastal initiative with the motto, “climate action led by people in boots, not people in suits.” The Campaign works across the U.S. fishing community to unlock a groundswell of fishermen-driven climate leadership and foster momentum towards fishery-friendly climate solutions.

“Climate and energy issues are defining features of what it means to be a seafood harvester today,” said Sarah Schumann, a commercial fisherman who led the research team and serves as the director of the Fishery Friendly Climate Action Campaign. “Whether we’re grappling with ocean acidification, warming-induced volatility in our catches, or the impacts of ocean-based renewable energy development in our most precious fishing grounds, fishermen are feeling the heat. This research meets the moment head-on and shows: the fishing community – and the working class in general – have what it takes to lead.”