Referring to legalities and taking no note of scientists’ fear for the stock, Iceland defends its unilaterally raising the mackerel TAC as “completely justified”.
Johann Gudmundsson, a spokesman for the Icelandic Agriculture and Fisheries ministry, pointed out to the AFP news agency that his nation “has never been subject to a quota, and as a coastal state, we can set our own limits.”
The coastal states agreement between the European Union and Norway, Iceland and the Faroe Islands – an autonomous Danish province that, like Iceland, depends heavily on fisheries – ran out in 2009, and no new accord has been reached. Talks will resume in London on 12 October.
Claiming that large quantities of mackerel had moved north due to warmer water, out of EU waters, both Iceland and the Faroe Islands raised their catch quotas significantly earlier this year, provoking a wave of protests from competing fishermen as well as environmental groups.
EU Fisheries Commissioner Maria Damanaki hinted that vessels from those nations could be blocked out from EU waters, and that the conflict might affect Iceland’s recently opened membership talks.
At the fisheries ministers’ September Council meeting, strong support was voiced for Damanaki’s tough stand, although she chose to somewhat play down her threats concerning the accession talks.
In a statement reacting to the Council meeting, the Icelandic ministry reiterated the absence of a global agreement, adding that “one should refrain from attempting to make Iceland and the Faroe Islands particularly responsible for this as the EU and Norway are no less responsible”.
The ministry made no mention of scientists’ claims that the increased TACs were way above what would be sustainable in regard of the stocks.