Milan – Today the General Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean Sea (GFCM) closes the doors on its annual meeting. For the first time in its 60 year history, the Commission, composed of representatives from Mediterranean and Black Sea countries, has agreed to fisheries management measures aimed at recovering fish stocks in the region. Until now, … Read more
Spanish researchers have published[i] in PLoS ONE the discovery of a ‘rock’ sponge reef unique in the world. The structure, of which its kind was thought to have been extinct millions of years ago, was discovered at a depth of 760 metres surrounding the top of a small seamount between Valencia and Ibiza where drilling … Read more
Oceana and over 50 scientists urge Mediterranean States to establish a management plan for demersal fisheries in the Strait of Sicily based on the best available scientific advice to ensure the recovery of overexploited stocks of hake and deep-water rose shrimp. The letter, signed by the scientists, will be disseminated at the 39th session of … Read more
Today, the European Environment Agency (EEA) published its State of Nature report, a six-year assessment of the conservation status of threatened European habitats and species protected under the Natura 2000 network, the world’s largest network of nature conservation areas. Oceana warns that most EU marine species and habitats within the Natura 2000 network remain in … Read more
Oceana warns that even though fishing within Natura 2000 marine areas is a major threat to protected species and habitats, most of these sites lack measures to regulate it. Campaigners from the marine conservation organisation have called for the establishment of effective management measures during the first EU biogeographical seminar on marine Natura 2000 management, … Read more
Today, a plenary session of the European Parliament in Strasbourg voted on the multiannual management plan (MAP) for fisheries in the Baltic Sea – the first MAP under the reformed Common Fisheries Policy (CFP). The plan concerns the long-term managing of major commercial stocks of cod, sprat and herring, as well as providing measures for species of … Read more
An underwater robot will help analyse impact on the seabed and reveal the best strategy for removing fuel and other pollutantsThe Russian vessel “Oleg Naydenov” recently sunk in one of the most important fisheries areas in the Canary Islands. The location of the wreck, south of Gran Canaria, is home to important upwellings of nutrients … Read more
The Danish Minister of Environment, Kirsten Brosbøl, and the Minister of Food, Agriculture and Fisheries, Dan Jørgensen, have submitted a joint proposal to establish six new Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) in the Kattegat in order to protect its soft-bottom habitats. Soft-bottom represents around one-quarter of the Danish part of the Kattegat but currently remain completely … Read more
The government’s proposal is intended to protect specific soft-bottom habitats in the Kattegat, of which some are red-listed. In a joint statement, the four conservation organisations stress that larger areas of seabed should be protected than the government suggests. The organisations also argue that all Kattegat fisheries should only operate with environmentally-friendly equipment. “The government’s … Read more
Last week, Oceana attended an international meeting on blue sharks that was held in Tenerife, Spain, by ICCAT (the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas). The meeting was the first of two for this year’s assessment of blue sharks in the Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea – the first ICCAT assessment that has … Read more
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