Launching

his recording, made in January 2025, is of one of the fishing boats being launched from the beach in Hastings. This sustainable fishing fleet has a history spanning over 200 years and faces many challenges, such as the gradual decline of fish stocks, damage to the marine environment from pollution and climate change, over regulation and unfair competition and encroachment from the european industrial fishing fleets. Beach launched fishing boats are part of the cultural identity of our island, with its own deeply embedded heritage, culture and traditions that are disappearing with the decline of fishing communities. The recording was made as part of a 15 year project by myself working with Hastings Fishermens Protection Society to capture the oral history, and soundscapes of the fleet to create an archive for now and the future.Recorded by Mary Hooper.