Oceana applauds EU Commission steps to improve control and enforcement in fisheries

The effective enforcement of the new rules applied to the EU Fisheries Control regulation will encourage a culture of compliance, simplify the application of control rules and harmonize standards for inspections and sanctions. The credibility of the Common Fisheries Policy depends on all of these elements. “The reformed Common Fisheries Policy must at its core … Read more

Common Fisheries Policy reform

The Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) is the basic management tool for the fishery and aquaculture sector in the European Union. The current CFP (Council Regulation 2371/2002) entered into force on 1 January 2003 and constituted the reform of the previous fisheries policy that established the fisheries guidelines of the previous twenty years. It was at the … Read more

Oceana details some key points for the effective recovery of the anchovy

The international organisation is also proposing that sanctions are imposed on governments, such as the Spanish and French, which are unable to manage their fisheries properly. Oceana is asking France and Spain to listen to the petitions of the shallow-water fleet in the Cantabrian Sea to close the anchovy fishery for as long as it … Read more

The fishing grounds off the Iberian penninsula, the west of Ireland and the North Sea are those in the worst state

For decades, politicians have been ignoring scientific advice on preventing the collapse of the North-East Atlantic fisheries. Despite the numerous alarms raised by scientists for years, the quotas agreed by politicians at Fisheries Ministers’ Councils have repeatedly disregarded these warnings. For 2004, recommendations were to reduce anchovy catches to just 11,000 tonnes and yet 33,000 … Read more

Countries Release Joint Statement on Overfishing Subsidies

Following years of campaign work by Oceana, the United States, New Zealand, Argentina, Australia, Chile, Iceland and Norway released a joint statement that was submitted to the WTO calling for a reduction in fisheries subsidies. Read the full statement here.

Mackerel Friday: Spain overshoots 2010 quota by 79%

Mackerel’s been quite a hot topic over the past few months. You may remember last year’s “Mackerel Wars” between Iceland (and the Faroe Islands) and the EU. Unfortunately, Mackerel isn’t only overfished up north. The Commission recently reprimanded Spain for going over its 2010 allocated mackerel quota by 79% or 19,621 tons. The Spanish fleet’s … Read more