In view of the alarming increase in detentions of Spanish fishing vessels by the coastguards of a variety of countries due to their illegal fishing activities – on this particular occasion the Galician trawler “Cantábrico III” in Irish waters – the marine protection organisation Oceana is calling upon the Spanish government to demonstrate “zero tolerance” … Read more
As the annual negotiations to set fishing quotas for next year approach, Oceana urges Ministers not to dodge the difficult decisions that need to be made in order to prevent the collapse of many stocks. In advance of the Fisheries Council meeting, the European Commission has tabled a timid set of proposals for 2006 quotas, … Read more
At the ministerial meeting of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) held in Hong Kong between 13 and 18 December, Oceana called on representatives of the countries present and the Director General of the WTO, Pascal Lamy, to put a stop to fishing subsidies that encourage overfishing and other destructive fishing practices. “In this respect, the … Read more
A fleet of barely 20 fishing vessels manages to discard each year between 2,000 and 15,000 tonnes of anglerfish, generate more than 1,000 kilos of waste and “ghost nets” and overexploit stocks of anglerfish, deep-sea red crab and deep-sea sharks. Every day, more than 6,000 kilometres of fixed gillnets (known as rasco) are deployed in … Read more
On some occasions, the activities of these vessels have extended into Spanish waters. The research catamaran of the Oceana organisation, the Ranger, has been carrying out “in situ” surveillance of the illegal Italian driftnet fleet since the beginning of July, which operates out of bases in Sicily, Sardinia, around Naples and Sorrento, and the small … Read more
A few days ago, over 3 km of illegal driftnets were seized in Italy. It’s amazing, and disturbing that more than a decade after a driftnet ban was put in place in the EU – we are still seeing regular cases of infractions, particularly by the Italian fleet. Driftnets do not discriminate. The enormous nets … Read more
Oceana believes that it is crucial that all European States display the same level of commitment in application of Regulations. Oceana appreciates the political U-turn taken by the Ministry of Agriculture, Food, and the Environment to fight illegal fishing. The General Secretary for Fisheries, Carlos Domínguez, yesterday presented data on control of fishery product imports … Read more
Yesterday an overwhelming majority of the European Parliament voted for a gradual ban on the discarding of unwanted fish in the Skagerrak. Oceana welcomes this bold step towards ending the wasteful practice of throwing millions of tons of fish back into the sea. “It is rewarding to see that the Parliament is sticking to defending … Read more
In another late night Fisheries Council meeting, France and Spain led a group of countries into dismantling a hard earned discard ban that was overwhelmingly passed through the European Parliament earlier this month. All Member States but Sweden, disappointingly agreed to compromise the principle of a full discard ban by allowing up to 9 percent … Read more
After 18 months of negotiations, the Fisheries Committee of the EU parliament voted to put in place new measures that would effectively end overfishing and greatly improve the way the EU manages its fisheries, which have been historically poor managed and overfished. In recent years, the majority of its scientifically-assessed fisheries have been found to be … 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.
Oceana in Europe gratefully acknowledges EU funding support.
