31
May
Deeper cuts proposed for 2009
The European Commission is proposing to make deeper than usual cuts in fishing quotas in 2009 to tackle depleted stocks.
In a policy document the EU claim 88% of EU fish stocks are now overexploited versus 80% at this time last year and a global average of 25%; they also claim Europe’s domestic catch has decreased to 40% of all fish products consumed.
For its 2009 quota proposals, the Commission indicated they will abandon the policy of not varying TACs by more than 15% and will cut them by at least 25% for the most threatened stocks.
Scientists have long advised zero fishing for the most threatened stocks, but the Commission usually tries to balance the need for stock preservation with the need to keep fishermen in business claiming that if the fishing industry is against measures then any such measures are very difficult to implement.
For species less at risk from overfishing, annual TAC reductions will not be higher than 20% and in some cases, where fish numbers are increasing there could be increases up to 25%.
Powered by FireStats