THE Tasmanian company planning to base a fishing super trawler in Devonport is trying to reassure Tasmanians that the trawler will benefit the state, as protests by Greenpeace continue in the Dutch port of Ijmuiden where the FV Margiris is berthed.
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Activists put a chain around the ship's propeller and two climbers hung on cables between the ship and the quay, preventing it from leaving the port on Thursday.
Seafish Tasmania director Gerry Geen said basing the Margiris in Devonport would generate between $10 million and $15 million of economic activity a year for the state.
``We're a Tasmanian company; we fought hard to have it based in Tasmania,'' he said. ``We've been fishing in Tasmania for a long time and we are committed to sustainable fishing.''
Mr Geen said Seafish Tasmania's quota represented 5 per cent of the estimated stock.
``This is in contrast to other Australian states and international fisheries where it's up to 40 per cent,'' he said.
Mr Geen said it was not the size of the vessel that mattered, rather the size of the quota.
Greenpeace oceans campaigner Nathaniel Pelle said that wherever the Margiris had gone, it had destroyed fish stocks and ruined fishermen's lives.
More than 12,000 people have signed an online petition calling on the federal government to reject the proposal for the Margiris to operate here.
