A new European Commission proposal to overhaul the regulation of deep-sea fisheries in the northeast Atlantic Ocean is a promising step toward transforming the area into a sustainable fishery. The proposal would repeal Council Regulation (EC) 2347/2002 (the ‘deep-sea access regime’) and establish new conditions for EU vessels fishing for deep-sea species in the northeast Atlantic.
Author: The Pew Environment Group
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As currently practised, deep-sea fishing has serious and widespread environmental consequences for deep-sea fishing countries, the international community, and ocean ecosystems. Studies reveal that deep-sea fishing fleets around the world are causing significant harm to the ocean ecosystem by damaging vulnerable marine ecosystems both within their Exclusive Economic Zones and on the high seas. Such damage occurs through bottom contact with fragile habitats and the overfishing of highly vulnerable deep-sea species. Many deep-sea species are now believed to be depleted regionally, if not globally.
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The UN General Assembly (UNGA) is discussing proposals to provide urgent protection for the biodiversity of the deep seas from destructive activities, most specifically from high seas bottom trawl fishing. The European Union has proposed language that is significantly weaker than what it has already agreed to do within the context of the Northeast Atlantic. Moreover, the EU proposal fails to reflect the fundamental commitments and obligations of the European Union and its member States as parties to the United Nations Fish Stocks Agreement (FSA), the Law of the Sea Convention (UNCLOS), and the Convention on Biological Diversity.
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