The Entry/Exit scheme aims to align the capacity of the EU fishing fleet with available fishing resources. In particular, this means that the capacity of any vessel entering the fishery is balanced by the prior withdrawal of a vessel or vessels with the equivalent capacity.
The Commission has announced emergency measures to save the ailing eastern Baltic cod stock from impending collapse. Emergency measures will ban, with immediate effect, commercial fishing for cod in most of the Baltic Sea until 31 December 2019.
Today the European Commission proposed a multi-annual plan for fish stocks in the western waters, concerning the fleet of Belgium, Germany, France, Ireland, Spain, Portugal and the UK in the Atlantic Ocean. The proposal aims at restoring and maintaining stocks at sustainable levels, while ensuring social and economic viability for the fishermen operating in the region.
The European Parliament, the Council and the Commission have reached a political agreement on a multi-annual management plan for demersal fish stocks in the North Sea. This comprehensive plan covers more than 70% of the fishing sector, sets catch limits based on science and brings decision-making closer to the fisherman.
According to the latest Annual Economic Report, the overall economic performance of the EU fishing fleet improved again in 2015.
The seminar reviews the latest information on the state of fish stocks and of the economic developments of the fleets in the North-east Atlantic, the North Sea, the Baltic Sea, and in the Mediterranean.
On Tuesday 26 September 2017, in a Seminar on the Status of European Fish Stocks and the Economic situation of European fishing fleets, the European Commission will be hearing the views of senior experts in fisheries biology from the Directorate General for Maritime Affairs and Fisheries, the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea, the Scientific, Technical and Economic Committee for Fisheries, NGOs, the industry, national administrations and members of the public.
Commissioner Vella is in Zadar, Croatia to participate in a conference on the Commission's proposal for a Multiannual Plan for small pelagics in the Adriatic, namely for anchovy and sardines.
Today the Commission adopted a proposal for a multi-annual plan for the management of small pelagic stocks (anchovy, sardine, mackerel and horse-mackerel) in the Adriatic.
Eliminating the wasteful practice of discarding fish at sea is one of the main aims of the reformed Common Fisheries Policy, adopted in 2014. This will not only improve sustainability, but also boost data collection, which is essential for scientists to provide reliable advice.
Important conservation and management measures for 2017 were adopted, most of them at the initiative of the EU, at the 35th Annual Meeting of the North-East Atlantic Fisheries Commission (NEAFC).
At its 20th Special Meeting from 14 to 21 November 2016 in Vilamoura, Portugal, the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) under the lead of the EU took an impressive number of important decisions. Commissioner Vella said: "I welcome that at its 50th anniversary the second performance review recognises ICCAT's high performance. This means that our efforts to improve international fisheries governance are paying off. I am also very pleased that all Mediterranean countries have agreed to address the dire situation of Mediterranean swordfish by accepting to limit and reduce their catches gradually over 5 years in combination with a comprehensive package of other measures. Bringing back this emblematic species to sustainable levels will benefit many fishermen, including the small scale fleets. But I am also very happy that for the first time ICCAT has agreed to manage sharks through a measure for blue sharks. Unfortunately, though, ICCAT was not yet ready for a shark fins naturally attached policy. However, the high number of supporting countries bodes well for the future."
The Commission has adopted today two Delegated Regulations establishing discard plans for certain demersal fisheries in the Mediterranean and in the Black Sea. Discarding is the practice of returning unwanted catches to the sea, either dead or alive, either because they are too small, the fisherman has no quota, or because of certain catch composition rules.
This month the Commission adopted three Delegated Regulations establishing discard plans for certain demersal fisheries and one for pelagic fishery. Discard plans are a temporary measure facilitating the phase-out of discards and the phase-in of a new region-specific style of fisheries management.
The 23rd annual meeting of the Commission for the Conservation of Southern Bluefin Tuna (CCSBT) met from 10 to 13 October 2016 in Kachsiung, Chinese Taipeh. The EU is pleased by the progress made and welcomes science-based decisions on the permitted catch levels for southern bluefin tuna for 2017 and for 2018-2020, as well as the strengthening of the fight against illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing and the ban on large-scale driftnets. The EU regrets that seabird mitigation measures were not adopted due to a lack of sufficient support.
The European Commission has adopted two regulations that will facilitate two Member States to comply with European environmental legislation to protect natural environments. In particular the regulations will help the implementation of the Marine Strategy Framework and the Habitats and Birds Directives.
