News
September 9, 2010
Big salmon escape a deadly threat in Scotland
A British game fish association has warned that “genetic spill” from fish farms is threatening with collapse the whole salmon fishing industry in Scotland. Paul Knight, chief executive of The Salmon and Trout Association, told members of the Scottish Parliament that fish that escape from Norwegian-owned farms have had a “massive contributory factor” in the … Continued
September 8, 2010
Many saying it loud and clear
28,500 people have signed a call for greater sustainability in fisheries that will be handed to Fisheries Commissioner Maria Damanaki as she meets an OCEAN2012 delegation on 13 September. The petition, launched at the European Fish Week in June, called for environmental sustainability being a top priority in the new Common Fisheries Policy (CFP), to … Continued
September 8, 2010
COM asking for input on biodiversity, Atlantic sea basin
A new consultation – involving all sorts of stakeholders – on a post-2010 biodiversity policy for the European Union has started, to be concluded on 22 October. The new consultation, following a “first round” in June, includes sub-targets in six areas: agriculture and forestry fisheries nature protection green infrastructure invasive species the EU’s contribution to … Continued
September 8, 2010
New Treaty can work either way, lawyers find
A study from a group of legal experts finds it “crucial” how the shared competence between the EU and its member states implied in the new Lisbon Treaty is sorted out in practice. ClientEarth, a London-based group of activist lawyers committed to environmental issues, notes that while the “old” community treaty did not explicitly mention … Continued
September 7, 2010
US managers leaving TACs, embracing ITQs
The use of catch shares in fisheries management, instead of all-embracing TACs, is spreading over the USA, with a program proposed by one of eight regional management councils now winning formal federal approval. The federal body, The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) Fisheries Service (NMFS), recently approved a plan governing West Coast trawl groundfish … Continued
September 2, 2010
“Seafood stewardship in crisis”, experts say
In an opinion piece in the current issue of Nature magazine, six leading scientists claim that the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC), the world’s most established eco-labelling system for seafood, is “rapidly failing on its promise”. “We believe that, as the MSC increasingly risks its credibility, the planet risks losing more wild fish and healthy marine … Continued
September 2, 2010
Sweden testing chips’n fish
A new technique for making seafood traceable down to the where-when-and-what of every individual catch is being tested in Swedish stores. The project run jointly by the Board of Fisheries, scientists at the University of Lund and the sector, is based on Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) where data is read from a computer chip on … Continued
September 1, 2010
STECF advices reduced effort for Baltic cod
The EU Commission’s main scientific advisory body has generally agreed with earlier scientific advice on next year’s Baltic catch quotas, but adds that fishing effort should be reduced for the dominant eastern cod stock. In its review of advice published in May by the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES), the Scientific, … Continued
September 1, 2010
NGO letter on deep-sea matters
In a letter to DG MARE, the EU Commissions “Fisheries Ministry”, eight environmental organisations call for taking the precautionary approach to setting catch quotas for deep-sea species in 2011 and 2012. The letter, signed by Birdlife International, the Bloom Association, the Deep Sea Conservation Coalition, Pew Environment Group, Seas At Risk, the European Anglers Alliance, WWF … Continued
September 1, 2010
Scottish rift in mackerel war
The solid Scottish united front against Faroese and Icelandic mackerel scavengers is showing signs of wilting, with an Aberdeen producer praising the Faroe way of managing their stocks – as opposed to the way the EU has done it. The conflict surrounding mackerel stocks that have migrated from EU to Faroe and Icelandic waters in … Continued