Friday

29th Mar 2024

Opinion

EU fisheries: little learned 20 years later

  • The EU is sending its fleets to fish deeper and further out at sea (Photo: Bruno de Giusti)

EU ministers will gather in Brussels on Tuesday (12 June) for a crucial vote on the general approach for the reform of the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP).

The developments of these last few weeks indicate that the European Parliament - the Council of Ministers' equal partner for the first time on fisheries issues - has already shown much more ambition than many national governments. Indeed, the direction of the council's discussions is worrying.

Read and decide

Join EUobserver today

Get the EU news that really matters

Instant access to all articles — and 20 years of archives. 14-day free trial.

... or subscribe as a group

A meeting last month clearly showed that that only a very small minority of member states is truly willing and ready to transform fisheries management in Europe.

Member states have consistently disregarded scientific recommendations and the EU continues to spend millions of euros on subsidies to artificially maintain an oversized and unprofitable fleet.

Instead of tackling the depletion in Europe's own waters, the EU is sending its fleet to fish deeper and further out at sea - therefore also contributing to the exhaustion of other countries' vital fisheries resources. This is a cycle that cannot be sustained. It goes against both nature and the economy.

There can be no social and economic benefits if the environment, which provides the resource, is not prioritised. It is as simple as this: no fish means no fishing industry. Successful reform must place the resources and a long-term approach at its very core.

The formula is simple. Take just enough without depleting the stocks, without preventing their capacity to grow back, and without destroying the seabed and the habitats they depend on – and yes, be willing to make short term sacrifices for the long term benefit of everyone involved.

We are a few days away from the opening of the Rio+20 environmental summit. Does the EU really want to be less ambitious than it was 20 years ago?

Twenty years ago, at the Rio summit, we already knew that our oceans were in trouble and what was needed to restore them.

We already knew that we needed to maintain fish stocks above levels which can produce the Maximum Sustainable Yield (MSY) - the maximum about of fish you can take without compromising its ability to rebuild - that instead of destroying fish habitats, we needed to implement the ecosystem-based approach and the precautionary principle in fisheries management.

Ten years ago, in Johannesburg, the very same principles were recalled, this time with an added sense of urgency.

Yet member states are today still challenging the need to change fisheries management in Europe, to follow scientific advice, to restore fish stocks above levels which can produce the MSY, to end wasteful practice, and to protect marine habitats.

The MSY requirement by 2015 is not just another NGO talking point. It has been around for more than 30 years, and is crucial step towards improving the state of our fisheries. It may be complex, but difficulty does not excuse inaction.

Discards is another issue at the forefront of the debate around the EU's fisheries policy. But the current discard ban proposal lacks the necessary elements to truly tackle the waste of 1.3 million tonnes of fish every year - in fact, it applies to less than 5 percent of those species targeted by the European fleet.

In these times of crisis (both economic and environmental), politicians are expected to look towards the future, and take the necessary decisions to solve problems.

Europe's fisheries are vital to our communities, our culture and our health. It is their duty to protect this resource for the generations to come.

The writer is executive director of the Washington-based conservation group, Oceana, in Europe

Disclaimer

The views expressed in this opinion piece are the author's, not those of EUobserver.

Morocco expels EU fishing boats

Morocco has told all EU fishing boats to immediately get out of its waters after MEPs scotched a bilateral aid agreement in a row over Western Sahara.

New EU policy aims to reduce overfishing by 2015

In a frank admission that the current EU fisheries policy is "not working", the responsible commissioner Maria Damanaki on Wednesday unveiled a new set of measures aimed at reducing overfishing by 2015. Environmental groups are sceptical that the plan will work.

EU fisheries reform losing momentum

After a promising start, fundamental reform of EU fisheries polices has lost momentum but it is not too late to repair some of the damage to the engine room of the 2012 reform.

Inching towards a fisheries deal

As fish ministers meet in Brussels Monday, the Common Fisheries Policy is on the brink of a crucial step in its reform process.

Why UK-EU defence and security deal may be difficult

Rather than assuming a pro-European Labour government in London will automatically open doors in Brussels, the Labour party needs to consider what it may be able to offer to incentivise EU leaders to factor the UK into their defence thinking.

Column

EU's Gaza policy: boon for dictators, bad for democrats

While they woo dictators and autocrats, EU policymakers are becoming ever more estranged from the world's democrats. The real tragedy is the erosion of one of Europe's key assets: its huge reserves of soft power, writes Shada Islam.

Latest News

  1. Kenyan traders react angrily to proposed EU clothes ban
  2. Lawyer suing Frontex takes aim at 'antagonistic' judges
  3. Orban's Fidesz faces low-polling jitters ahead of EU election
  4. German bank freezes account of Jewish peace group
  5. EU Modernisation Fund: an open door for fossil gas in Romania
  6. 'Swiftly dial back' interest rates, ECB told
  7. Moscow's terror attack, security and Gaza
  8. Why UK-EU defence and security deal may be difficult

Stakeholders' Highlights

  1. Nordic Council of MinistersJoin the Nordic Food Systems Takeover at COP28
  2. Nordic Council of MinistersHow women and men are affected differently by climate policy
  3. Nordic Council of MinistersArtist Jessie Kleemann at Nordic pavilion during UN climate summit COP28
  4. Nordic Council of MinistersCOP28: Gathering Nordic and global experts to put food and health on the agenda
  5. Friedrich Naumann FoundationPoems of Liberty – Call for Submission “Human Rights in Inhume War”: 250€ honorary fee for selected poems
  6. World BankWorld Bank report: How to create a future where the rewards of technology benefit all levels of society?

Stakeholders' Highlights

  1. Georgia Ministry of Foreign AffairsThis autumn Europalia arts festival is all about GEORGIA!
  2. UNOPSFostering health system resilience in fragile and conflict-affected countries
  3. European Citizen's InitiativeThe European Commission launches the ‘ImagineEU’ competition for secondary school students in the EU.
  4. Nordic Council of MinistersThe Nordic Region is stepping up its efforts to reduce food waste
  5. UNOPSUNOPS begins works under EU-funded project to repair schools in Ukraine
  6. Georgia Ministry of Foreign AffairsGeorgia effectively prevents sanctions evasion against Russia – confirm EU, UK, USA

Join EUobserver

EU news that matters

Join us