Many shark species migrate great distances across our oceans, crossing various jurisdictional boundaries along the way. These sharks, like tunas and swordfish, call large swaths of the oceans home and their populations cannot be claimed or effectively managed by any one country. The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), the primary … Read more
Management of Mediterranean swordfish has repeatedly been neglected to the detriment of the species. The ICCAT Standing Committee for Research and Statistics has assessed this stock as overexploited, with spawning biomass below sustainable levels and with 50-70% of catches comprised of juvenile fish. The complete absence of real management measures makes the Mediterranean swordfish fishery … Read more
Several non-governmental organisations (NGOs) have engaged with issues surrounding fisheries subsidiesfor many years, including actively participating in discussions on EU fisheries subsidies and their reformsince the late 1990s. The reform of fisheries subsidies is also an important agenda item in the World TradeOrganization subsidy reform debate. While there have been some past successes in terms … Read more
Given the diversity of possible appearances of some habitats contained in the OSPAR List of Endangered and/or Declining species and habitats across the North East Atlantic, a more precise description of the habitat as it occurs in relation to different substrates, depths and regions will need to be developed. When defining habitats, there are several … Read more
In this document Oceana reviews the current state of regional protection initiatives in the Mediterranean Basin and presents a varied proposal for the protection of marine areas which it considers essential for maintaining a balance in the Mediterranean Basin and achieving good environmental status. The objective of the aforementioned proposal is to contribute to the … Read more
The world’s oceans are nearing irreversible collapse. Most of the world’s fisheries are fully exploited or facing overexploitation and depletion. In Europe, the oceans are equally in crisis. Only a minority of commercially fished stocks have been assessed or are managed. Of the fish stocks that have been scientifically assessed, the majority are overfished. An … Read more
The carnivorous sponge Asbestopluma hypogea, was known only from shallow submarine caves (-15 to -26 m) in the Western Mediterranean Sea and the Adriatic. Herein A. hypogea is reported from outside of caves, on seamounts in the Alboran Sea (-167 m), off the Balearics (-100 m) and north off Sicily (-660 m), and along steep … Read more
1. The Common Fisheries policy should prioritise ecological sustainability. 2. The Common Fisheries Policy should apply an ecosystem-based approach to the management of fishing activities. 3. The Common Fisheries policy should implement a science-based approach. 4. The Common Fisheries Policy should effectively apply the precautionary approach. 5. The Common Fisheries Policy should implement a flexible … Read more
The Importance of Addressing By-Catch and Discard Management. In Europe around 1,3 million tonnes of marine fish are discarded every year, representing 13% of total catches. Because in most cases discards do not survive, the negative ramifications of this enormous waste of marine resources are severe. The unnecessary death of juvenile and mature individuals of … Read more
Como parte de los trabajos de muestreo para conocer los fondos submarinos españoles que Oceana está llevando a cabo desde 2006 en colaboración con la Fundación Biodiversidad, durante 2009 se preparó una expedición de 2 meses de duración al archipiélago canario. El motivo de esta campaña era obtener información sobre ecosistemas y especies canarias con … 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.
