Source: Slow Food
Slow Food regrets that instead of setting sustainable catch limits for 19 deep-water stocks, the Agriculture and Fisheries Council withdrew six stocks from the quota, and agreed on the fishing opportunities for only 13 deep-sea stocks in the EU and international waters in the North-East Atlantic, for 2019 and 2020.
Continue reading Slow Food Worried about Newly Adopted Decisions on Marine Environments
Source: Undercurrent News
The EU Council has agreed on the total allowable catches (TACs) and quotas for certain deep-sea stocks in the EU and international waters in the North-East Atlantic, for 2019 and 2020.
The fish stocks concerned are deep sea sharks, black scabbardfish, alfonsino, roundnose grenadier, and red seabream.
“In view of the vulnerability of deep-sea species to human activity, and in order to prevent their over-exploitation, the Council decided to raise the TACs for the two stocks and to reduce the TACs for ten stocks as proposed by the Commission.”
It said it had decided to make cuts to fishing opportunities to protect the maritime environment and help the industry in the longer term.
Continue reading here.
Source: #DeepSeaFishing
The European Parliament today (13 December) approved a Regulation establishing new rules for fishing in the North-East Atlantic, including ALDE’s support for a total ban of bottom trawling below 800 meters in EU waters. The lack of a proper regulation and the development of industrial fisheries in the EU during the last decades led to a dramatic stock depletion and destruction of marine habitat. This ban, setting a worldwide precedent, will help to protect vulnerable deep-sea marine ecosystems more effectively by setting stricter conditions on deep-sea fisheries.
Continue reading European Parliament bans trawling below 800m in EU waters
Source: Seas At Risk
The annual meeting of the North East Atlantic Fisheries Commission closed today without agreement regarding management of the deep-sea fish orange roughy. The Commission also agreed on total allowable catches of 7,500 tonnes for redfish in the Irminger Sea. These decisions leave both vulnerable species subject to overfishing, despite clear scientific advice to not allow any direct fishing for them.
To: Representatives of the European Parliament, Council, and Commission
December 2015
Re: Priorities for trilogue negotiations on a regulation for deep-sea fishing in the northeast Atlantic
We welcome recent progress towards agreeing a regulation to protect a uniquely vulnerable environment, three years after the European Commission issued its proposal and nearly two years since the European Parliament’s first reading was adopted.
London, November 14, 2014 – The North East Atlantic Fisheries Commission (NEAFC) this week agreed to close six new areas totaling around 11,000 square kilometres to bottom fishing to protect vulnerable deep-sea species ecosystems and extended its prohibition on the catch of several shark species.
London — The North East Atlantic Fisheries Commission, or NEAFC, this week has adopted stronger regulations for the management of deep-sea fisheries and the conservation of deep-sea species and habitats in the North East Atlantic. NEAFC is a regional treaty organization established to manage high seas fisheries in the North East Atlantic Ocean. The new regulation is expected to enter into force in September of this year.
Source: WWF
Parties to the OSPAR Convention for the Protection of the Marine Environment of the North-East Atlantic should take measures to control human impacts in marine protected areas. Action is being urged in advance of the upcoming OSPAR meeting in Cascais, Portugal, beginning June 23.
Continue reading WWF urges new measures as protected areas fail high seas wildlife
LONDON (Nov. 15, 2013) – At its annual meeting this week, the North East Atlantic Fisheries Commission, or NEAFC, has failed to close seven areas to deep-sea bottom fishing to protect vulnerable deep-sea species and ecosystems. These seven areas were recommended to be closed by the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea, the scientific advisory organization mandated to provide advice to NEAFC on managing fisheries in the northeast Atlantic. Furthermore, after two years of negotiations NEAFC also failed to adopt revisions to its basic regulations for the protection of deep sea habitats and the conservation of deep-sea fish stocks to ensure consistency with United Nations General Assembly resolutions.
