Habitat Protection Archives

Oceana uncovers dozens of cases of illegal fishing in protected areas in the Mediterranean

Version française | Versione italiana Oceana launched today a report uncovering 41 potential cases of illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing in the Mediterranean Sea using data from Global Fishing Watch. The findings were submitted and discussed at two governmental meetings of the General Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean (GFCM)1, during which countries failed to provide clarification … Read more

Building a GFCM framework to combat IUU fishing

Monitor, control and surveillance are crucial to ensure proper fisheries management and to rebuild stocks, in particular in the Mediterranean Sea, where 80% of the stocks are considered to be outside biologically safe limits. The General Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean (GFCM) has taken significant steps in the last years towards reversing this situation, including … Read more

UN alert: Mediterranean is world’s most overfished sea

A health-check report on world fisheries and aquaculture by the United Nations (UN) has revealed that one-third of global marine fish stocks are now fished at unsustainable levels and have reached ‘overfished’ status. Oceana flags particular attention to the state of the Mediterranean and Black Sea, which according to the report published today, is the … Read more

The Mediterranean: Illegal fishing in our backyard?

Being one of the busiest seas in the world, the Mediterranean is also a sea where illicit fishing activities still go unnoticed and thus unpunished…until now. Most of the cases of illegal fishing that make news in Europe seem to happen in far flung regions such as the Pacific or even the Antarctic. But such … Read more

Joint NGO priorities on the Multi-annual plan for the Western Mediterranean Sea (WMedMAP)

The Commission’s proposal is a first step in the right direction to tackle the long-lasting overfishing situation in the Mediterranean Sea and realise the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP)’s objectives of achieving Maximum Sustainable Yield (MSY) by 2020 and minimize fisheries impacts on the ecosystems. However, the WMedMAP is clearly insufficient as it stands to reverse … Read more

Malta Expands Habitat Protections in Mediterranean

The government of Malta has announced the designation or expansion of eight marine protected areas in the Mediterranean. This announcement is the result of Oceana efforts that began in 2013, and the protections are based on the findings of two Oceana expeditions (2015 and 2016 LIFE Ba?AR Expeditions). Oceana mapped out sandbanks, reefs and more than … Read more

Marine Habitats in the Mediterranean

< Return to campaign The Mediterranean Sea represents a vast feeding ground and spawning ground for many fish species. Eastern Atlantic bluefin tuna spawn in the Mediterranean which makes the Balearic waters a key place for its survival. Many marine mammals also live here, some of them clearly in danger of extinction. The deep waters … Read more

Mediterranean Sea at Risk

The Mediterranean Sea, or Mare Nostrum, is one of the world’s most important seas. Located between Africa, Asia and Europe, it is also a primary trade route given its strategic — and geopolitically — important location. Within the coastal region, the people inhabiting the area have had centuries of interactions with the marine environment. Extensive … Read more

Identifying epibenthic habitats on the Seco de los Olivos Seamount: Species assemblages and environmental characteristics

High habitat diversity was observed on the Seco de los Olivos Seamount (SW Mediterranean Sea), a Site of Community Importance belonging to the Spanish marine Natura 2000 Network. Thirteen epibenthic habitats were identified by analysing 55 Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) transects from 76 m to 700 m depth and derived data from multibeam bathymetry and … Read more

La nuova proposta dell’UE non salva il Mediterraneo

Oceana lancia un appello all’UE per aumentare la profondità del divieto di pesca a strascico a 150 m durante tutto l’anno per invertire l’allarmante situazione di un mare sovrasfruttato.Il consiglio dell’UE inizia a dibattere oggi una nova proposta per un piano di gestione pluriennale degli stock ittici nel mar Mediterraneo occidentale. La nuova proposta della … Read more