AFH note : Setting fishing quotas in 2017

Setting fishing quotas in 2017
For too many stocks, EU ministers will not be able to follow scientific advice

Key points

  • On December, 12-13. 2016, EU ministers of fisheries will set 2017 fishing quotas, in theory according to scientific advice and with the objective of sustainable fisheries that provide maximum sustainable yield.
  • Scientific advice is established at the scale of fonctional units for fish populations, which are based on biological knowledge and evolve in time according to new knowledge on species ecology.
  • On the other hand, management areas, for which quotas are set, were defined in 1982, and hardly evolved since then.
  • Consequently, there is an increasing mismatch between the scale at which advice is given and the scale at which fishing is managed. This results in a very complex and often nontransparent quota-setting process for all stakeholders.
  • More importantly, these discrepancies create risks for the sustainability of biological resources. They jeopardize the achievement of maximum sustainable yield for the stocks concerned.

Download the complete note (in French only)

* Some areas have been simplified for a nicer view

Four case presented:

  • Case 1: concordance management unit – functional unit
  • Case 2: Scientific advice is split into several Total Allowable Catches (TACs)
  • Case 3: A TAC gathers several advice areas
  • Case 4: Complete mismatch between the management unit and the scientific advisory unit (division and / or recombination of advices areas, mixing of previous cases)

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