The problem

The EU’s Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) aims to match European fleet capacity to resource availability. Hitherto, it has been assumed that reducing fleet catching capacity and limiting fishing effort will reduce fishing mortality, but the scientific basis for this assumption is not fully established, particularly for pelagic fisheries. For the future of healthy fish stocks, the interaction between these factors needs urgent study.

Overview:

Cafe aims to carry out a comprehensive study of capacity and effort metrics and model their relationships to fishing mortality, and the economic drivers for capacity development. The project has six main objectives:

• Review the validity of measurements of fishing
  capacity and effort
• Compile a database of capacity, effort and mortality information
• Identify appropriate measurements for empirical modelling of these factors
• Identify the factors that drive change in the capacity of the case study fisheries over time
• Determine important economic and biological factors
• Examine the effect of applying the models

Contribution to policy development:

• Café will provide an improved scientific basis for policy-makers to match fishing capacity to the resources available
• It will provide defined measures of capacity, effort and fishing mortality
• New models will help policy-makers understand the biological and economic factors influencing industry investment and the distribution of fishing capacity
  and effort
• Café will illustrate how the application of the new models could affect the management of selected fisheries

Project deliverables

• Report: Measuring and assessing capacity in EU fisheries – June 2006
• Report: capacity management options in place in European and other fisheries – June 2007
• Report: Analyses undertaken in each case study fishery – December 2007
• Report: methodologies for analysing the information available on capacity adjustment and capacity utilisation – June 2008
• An empirical analysis of the capacity adjustment in the EU/EEA states involved – December 2008
• Evaluation of the performance and recommendations on which methods perform best for each of the case studies – November 2008
• Final Report – December 2008

Dissemination

• Website to disseminate progress and exchange data sets and analyses – June 2007
• Papers to peer-review scientific journals and articles to mainstream publications – ongoing
• Publication of annual project newsletters – ongoing
• Convene at least two seminars for fishery management stakeholders – ongoing

Technical information

Project acronym: CAFÉ
Project’s official full title: Capacity, F and Effort
Research priority: 1.3. Modernisation and sustainability of fisheries, including aquaculture-based production systems
Specific webpage: Details not yet available
Proposal/contract no: 022644
Start date: 1 January 2006
Kick off meeting: January 2006
Completion date: December 2008
European Commission scientific officer: Jacques Fuchs, jacques.fuchs@ec.europa.eu

Coordinator:
Dr Anna Korre
Name: Imperial College of Science Technology and Medicine
Abbreviated name: IMPERIAL
Address: Renewable Resources Assessment Group
T H Huxley School of Environment, Earth Sciences and Engineering
Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine - Royal School of Mines
Prince Consort Road
London SW7 2BP
Country: United Kingdom
Tel: +44 (0)20 7594 9284
Fax: +44 (0)20 7589 5319
Website: www.huxley.ic.ac.uk/research/rrag/rrag.htm

Partners

Name: Institut Français de Recherche pour l'Exploitation de la Mer
Abbreviated name: IFREMER
Country: France

Name: Food and Resource Economics Institute  
Abbreviated name: FOI
Country: Denmark

Name: Danish Institute for Fisheries Research
Abbreviated name: DIFRES
Country: Denmark

Name: Institute for Research in Economics and Business Administration
Abbreviated name: SNF
Country: Norway

Name: The Centre for Environment Fisheries and Aquaculture Science
Abbreviated name: CEFAS
Country: United Kingdom

Name: Fisheries Research Services Marine Laboratory  
Abbreviated name: FRS
Country: United Kingdom

Name: Centre for the Economics and Management of Aquatic Resources
Abbreviated name: CEMARE
Country: United Kingdom

Name: Instituto Español de Oceanografía
Abbreviated name: IEO
Country: Spain

Name: Fundacion AZTI-AZTI Fundazioa  
Abbreviated name: AZTI
Country: Spain

Name: Institut de Recherche pour le Développement
Abbreviated name: IRD  
Country: France

Name: Association pour la Recherche et le Développement des Méthodes et Processus Industriels
Abbreviated name: ARMINES
Country: France 

Name: Hellenic Centre for Marine Research
Abbreviated name: HCMR
Country: Greece

Name: Joint Research Centre
Abbreviated name: JRC
Country: Italy