1. Introduction In October 2021, EU fisheries ministers will agree on fishing opportunities in the Baltic Sea for 2022. As the deadline to end overfishing by 2020 at the latest as legally prescribed by Article 2(2) of the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP)1 has passed, all fishing limits must be in line with sustainable exploitation rates. … Read more
The ocean is key to tackling the climate and biodiversity emergencies Life on Earth depends on the ocean: no matter where you are, you depend on the ocean and its unique and rich biodiversity for the production of oxygen, food, energy, and the enormous amount of heat and carbon it absorbs. Yet, as United Nations … Read more
Evidence shows Italian vessels apparently fishing in areas where bottom trawling is forbidden Oceana calls on the GFCM and the EU to increase transparency to ensure sustainable fisheries management in the Mediterranean Oceana has detected two bottom trawlers apparently fishing illegally for 126 hours in one of the three areas of the Strait of Sicily … Read more
Oceana is calling on Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) to support a ban on bottom trawling, the most harmful and unselective fishing gear, in all EU marine protected areas (MPAs). The European Parliament’s environment committee (ENVI) will vote on its opinion on the EU 2030 Biodiversity Strategy on 27-28 May. Nicolas Fournier, Campaign Director, … Read more
Oceana calls on the General Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean (GFCM) to provide real protection for areas where bottom trawling is forbidden. The members of the GFCM, which include 22 countries and the European Union, are meeting this week to review their actions to tackle illegal fishing, ahead of its plenary meeting in November. “The … Read more
To mark the 30th anniversary in April of the designation of Cabrera national park in the Balearic islands, Oceana is presenting a proposal for better fisheries management of the enlarged area of the park to be considered in the new management plan which will be developed by the park authorities. Our proposal, which includes fisheries … Read more
If space is the ‘final frontier’, the ocean depths are no doubt the ultimate frontier. To this day it is hard to imagine, despite all our advanced technology, that we know more about the surface of the moon — hundreds of thousands of kilometers away — than of the complex ecosystems that inhabit the ocean’s deep … Read more
European Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) are mere ‘paper parks’ that provide little actual protection, a report released by NGO Oceana reveals. Seventy percent of 3449 Natura 2000 MPAs assessed were affected by at least one major threat1, with up to 12 threats found inside some sites in the Netherlands and in the UK. Only 0.07% of … Read more
Visit our online viewer to explore threats in European MPAs in more detail Executive Summary In the face of intense human pressure on European seas, a network of well-managed marine protected areas (MPAs) is critical for marine biodiversity protection. In 2018, the EU (including, at the time, the United Kingdom) declared having met international targets … Read more
To mark International Mountain Day, Oceana is drawing attention to threatened underwater mountains, known as seamounts, that are important hotspots of marine biodiversity. These submarine elevations can rise several kilometers above the seafloor and play a crucial ecological role in the functioning of deep-sea ecosystems. Just like terrestrial mountains, seamounts create highly productive areas that … Read more
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We have already protected nearly 4 million square miles of ocean and innumerable sea life - but there is still more to be done.
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