Fishing
An industry that defines Normandy
With 2 fish markets (out of 4 in Normandy), 1/3 of the landed catch, a wide variety of highly valued species (sole, squid, smooth-hound, whiting, pouting, turbot, skate, spotted dogfish, scallop, whelk, brown crab, spider crab, lobster), our ports are leading players in this industry that defines the identity of Normandy.
Each port has wharves dedicated to the unloading of fish and the two fish markets have efficient equipment (ice, commercial fishing equipment supplier, fish box supply, road haulage, etc.) that is regularly updated (chilling/freezing, logistics, etc.).
The fleet comprises a dozen deep-sea vessels and more than 100 coastal fishing boats. Every year they land over 12,000 tonnes of fish, shellfish and crustaceans to supply a seafood processing sector which is also located in the ports of Dieppe and Cherbourg.
Christophe Fouquet
Industrial clients / Ship and boat repairs contact
Caen-Ouistreham fishing industry
The port has a home fleet of fifteen vessels but also accommodates more than 150 visiting vessels, especially during the scallop fishing season. These are inshore and coastal fishing vessels. Every year the landing point, which features a 100 m quay and a 2,100 m² logistics and weighing platform, registers 1,500 tonnes of fish. Fishing products are transported to Port-en-Bessin fish market or sold directly on the quayside, the latter having 24 fish stalls where fishers can sell their catches.
Cherbourg fishing industry
With its wet dock and 5–6,000 tonnes of fish products landed by deep-sea and coastal vessels, the Cherbourg Fish Market offers a wide range of services: ice supply, sorting, labelling, cold rooms, fish tanks... It is the heart and first link in the peninsula’s seafood processing industry, and provides the equivalent of 1,000 full-time jobs. Ports of Normandy supports this industry by providing dedicated areas equipped with seawater intakes in the Produimer and Collignon business parks.
Dieppe fishing industry
With more than 400 m of quay dedicated to fishing in the Duquesne dock, a 870 m² refrigerated market with access to the Ango Dock regardless of the state of the tide, the capacity to unload 24/7 on the careening quay, a business enjoying continuous growth to reach almost 5,000 tonnes of fish, shellfish and crustaceans landed and sold, the Dieppe fish market is integral to the structure of the region’s fishing industry. It offers various services, such as collection, refuelling, fish box supply, commercial fishing equipment supplier, and wholesaler unit. And of course, Dieppe is the home of the prestigious red label scallop!
Brief overview
Montalivet Dam was built across the river Orne in 1908 and plays a key role in the operation of the Port of Caen-Ouistreham. It serves to maintain a constant water level in the Orne in order to supply the canal between Caen and the sea so large commercial vessels can access the city.
Conservation of biodiversity
To ensure the ecological coherence of the Orne, animal species must be able to travel freely along its waters and sediment must also be allowed to circulate. The dam must not prevent such movement, but instead facilitate it. Currently the structure is too selective and does not ensure free passage for all the species targeted by the regulations, such as eels, Atlantic salmon, sea trout, river trout, sea lamprey, river lamprey, and allis shad.
A necessary adaptation
As a result, the Monatlivet Dam needs to be improved by building a new fish pass to ensure the ecological coherence of the Orne, and to contribute to safeguarding its biodiversity.
The project could benefit from a grant of up to 80% of the cost from the Agence de l’Eau Seine-Normandie as part of the Eau&Climat 2019-2024 programme.
Brief overview
In partnership with the Association Nationale des Ports Maritimes Territoriaux and the 9 ports on the Channel and North Sea coast, in late 2018 the Port of Dieppe initiated an environmental assessment on sediment, waste, water quality, invasive species and the environmental coherence of its territory.
A comprehensive appraisal was undertaken across the ten ports concerned and allowed us to rank the environmental impacts and thus prioritise the actions to be performed.
Ports of Normandy is currently in the phase of assimilating the action plans and the practical local variations, in partnership with the local stakeholders concerned.
Example of an action
In the fight against marine exotic invasive species, Ports of Normandy renewed its partnership with the University of Caen Normandy to pursue a research project on the colonisation of these species on submerged plates in Dieppe marina.