By-catches and discards are amongst the main concerns of fisheries management. Every year, more than 27 million tonnes of fish is discarded worldwide. In the NE Atlantic, where most of the EU fleet operate, the level of discard is estimated at approximately 2.7 million tonnes per year. But the real level of by-catch and discards is not fully known. There isn’t even an estimate of the number of specimens damaged after escaping from the net or having a trawl pass over them.

The ICES Areas are shown on the map at the end of this post.

The FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations) has shown that nine of the twenty most wasteful fisheries in the world (in terms of the number of fish discarded in relation to that landed) are located in the Northeast Atlantic.

EU fishing policy clearly is promoting wasteful techniques.

It is important to note that by-catch and discards are not counted in the calculation of TAC’s (Total Allowable Catches) which means that the real impact of fishing and the actual volume of catches are systematically ignored.

Species that have no commercial interest are for the most part not even taken into account.

In terms of overall marine biodiversity, this is clearly not a precautionary approach, nor can it be considered as part of a sustainable fishing effort.

ICES (international Council for the Exploitation of the Sea) Areas

Related posts:

1. West coast nephrops fail assessment
2. Draft UK priorities for 2009 fisheries negotiations
3. Deep water stocks at risk