Based on the preliminary results, Oceana is asking for the repeal of the Italian decree authorising the use of the driftnets known as ferrettara. Driftnets, banned by the European Union since 2002, continue to pose a threat to the conservation of marine mammals and fish stocks in the waters of the Tyrrhenian Sea. The international … Read more
Today the Council of EU Fisheries Ministers put off agreement on legislation defining a driftnet, which would have closed a loophole in the EU law banning their use, enabling many vessels to flout the ban. Oceana calls on Ministers to agree this legislation by the end of June and also to take other urgent measures … Read more
The arrival of two border-control and French Navy helicopters caused the attackers, who were fishing in international waters, to flee. In the early Monday morning hours, a group of seven French driftnetters carried out a concerted attack on the Oceana Ranger fishery research vessel, which has been recording the activities of a fleet of about … Read more
Two days after the investiture of Nicolas Sarkozy as the new president of the French Republic, the international marine protection organisation Oceana is asking him to put into place measures in line with his electoral commitment to respect the law. Oceana is demanding that these promises be met by making effective the European ban on … Read more
Oceana is sceptical about this and demands effective control measures to ensure compliance with international agreements. The last step was taken in the approval of the fishing agreement between the European Union and the Kingdom of Morocco on February 27, in Rabat. This agreement destines €161 million to Morocco as economic compensation in exchange for … Read more
Oceana congratulates the Euro MPs for approving this definition and hopes for the quick approval by the European Union Council of Fisheries Ministers. Driftnets constitute an indiscriminate fishing method, banned by the General Assembly of the United Nations, by the European Union in 2002 and by the General Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean (GFCM) in … Read more
The Italian Legislative Department has recently backed the new “zero tolerance” policy recently announced by Paolo de Castro, the Italian Minister of Agriculture and Fishing, declaring it illegal for vessels to carry driftnets, known as “spadare” on board. These nets have been prohibited by the EU since 2002. This decision precedes the publication of a … Read more
Despite the fact that driftnets have been banned in the Mediterranean for many years, a fleet of Moroccan fishing vessels continues to use this destructive fishing gear in the Alboran Sea and the Straits of Gibraltar, setting nets up to 12 kilometres long. Oceana, the marine conservation organisation, estimates that this fleet is made up … Read more
The Moroccan netters are overfishing the stocks of swordfish and killing 15,000 dolphins, pilot whales, sperm whales and other cetaceans, as well as 100,000 sharks per year. As soon as the illegal fishing activity of the Italian and French drift netters was documented during the months of June and July, the Oceana Ranger research catamaran … Read more
The Director of Oceana in Europe, Xavier Pastor, has written a letter to the Italian Government’s Fisheries Minister, Mr. Paolo de Castro, in which he describes the preliminary results of the report that Oceana is preparing dealing with the Italian fleet’s use of illegal driftnets. This report, which will be sent to the European Union … Read more
Sign up today to get weekly updates and action alerts from Oceana.
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.
