Political pressure pays off as Northeast Atlantic fish populations show signs of recovery

Fish populations in the EU, particularly those in the Northeast Atlantic, are showing clear signs of recovery, as the latest European Commission annual communication on the state of EU fisheries concludes. It reveals a positive upward trend in the biomass of Northeast Atlantic fish populations over the years since 2007. During that time, Oceana, together with … Read more

Blue Manifesto: The roadmap to a healthy ocean in 2030

This report reviews the progress –if any– on the milestones of the Blue Manifesto, the roadmap to a healthy ocean by 2030. This third assessment looks at the milestones set for 2022 and updates the milestones for 2021 and 2020. When comparing the scoring between these three years, it is clear that there is a … Read more

World Ocean Day: Poor ocean policies put iconic marine wildlife at risk

Oceana urges the EU to raise the ambition to rebuild marine abundance and increase ocean resilience to the climate crisis On World Ocean Day, Oceana calls on decision-makers to create and enforce laws to rebuild European seas and increase their resilience to the climate crisis. Most of the problems that are devastating the ocean can … Read more

Conservative politicians, profits, and pan-seared sturgeon

This World Ocean Day, ‘the tides may be changing’, but political will remains stagnant when it comes to saving Europe’s seas. Dozens of Europe’s most iconic marine species are critically endangered. That’s CRI-TIC-CAL-LY endangered—just two steps below “extinct in the wild” and “extinct” in the IUCN Red List. Sharks and rays, including the hammerhead and … Read more

Oceana Defends EU Common Fisheries Policy from Attack

Oceana and its allies defended the European Union’s main fisheries law from attacks, including attempts to overturn the discard ban, which was the subject of strong lobbying by the industrial fishing sector. Adopted in 2013, the Common Fisheries Policy has led EU fisheries to become increasingly more sustainable by adhering to principles such as science-based … Read more

EU fisheries package: a thin green veneer over business as usual

Brussels – Reacting to today’s release by the European Commission of its package of communications to protect fisheries and the ocean, Oceana considers it an attempt to put a thin green veneer over business as usual. In the midst of the growing climate and biodiversity crises – the biggest challenge of our generation, urgent action … Read more

Expert views on the EU fisheries package

Today, the European Commission is releasing its package of communications to protect fisheries and the ocean. Its content defines the European Commission’s ocean ambition for marine protection, decarbonisation of the fishing industry and sustainable fisheries management for the remainder of its mandate. Here we speak to Oceana colleagues, Nicolas Fournier – director of habitat protection, … Read more

New report: EU must accelerate transition to a low-carbon, resilient fishing sector

Solutions identified for reducing fleet emissions would help achieve climate targets Brussels – As the European Commission prepares to publish a strategy to accelerate the energy transition in the EU fisheries sector, a new report published today by Oceana looks into solutions to reduce fuel use to support this transition. The report finds that there … Read more