Next year’s catch quotas in the Baltic Sea and tuna management, to be dealt with at the October Council meeting on 26 October, will be the first real test of the Member States’ commitment to prioritising long-term sustainability for fish stocks in this period of preparation for the reform of the Common Fisheries Policy.
The Commissioner has repeatedly made clear that she wants to see an end to “haggling” over TACs, and that in the future scientific advice – in the case of the Baltic Sea from the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES) – should be followed with no compromises.
Indications are that some Member States will challenge this position when next year’s fishing limits are up for decision in the Council in October (Baltic Sea), November (Black Sea TACs) and in December (North Sea and deep-sea fisheries), and push for limits above those recommended by the scientists.
That is, NGOs and other opponents point out, exactly what has lead to 72 percent of all assessed fish stocks in EU waters being overfished, threatening the long-term viability of the fishing sector, as well.
Dissatisfaction with the Commission line is also expressed by Estonia and Latvia, calling for a new agenda point, asking the Commission to report on the recent agreement on management measures at the annual meeting in Canada of the Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organisation (NAFO).
The final deal at NAFO, which was in line with the Commission position, followed scientific advice for the stocks, including a closure of the shrimp fishery off the Flemish Cap near Newfoundland where Estonian vessels are active.
Other fisheries issues to be up for discussions at the October meeting in Luxembourg will be guidelines for the upcoming annual consultations between the Union and Norway, and the EU negotiating mandate on tuna management under the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT).
The annual ICCAT meeting, to take place in Paris on 17-27 November,is expected to agree the future management of the severely threatened Atlantic bluefin tuna stock.
Prior to the Council meeting, FISH and Seas At Risk sent a letter to all EU Fisheries ministers and their advisers, providing recommendations on the Baltic TACs and the ICCAT negotiations. Attached to the letter were detailed background analyses on the two issues.