The European Commission is seeking feedback as it prepares to revamp its multiannual management plans (MAP) across the European Union’s sea basins.
“The commission asks E.U. countries, the fishing sector, scientific institutions, non-governmental organizations, regional authorities and coastal communities to give their views and to send scientific, ecosystem and economic data on fisheries MAPs,” the commission said in a release.
In the announcement, the commission acknowledged that several provisions in its MAPs have “proven difficult to apply,” although two policies are of particular concern. In the Western Mediterranean, the commission is looking at the impact of the “most vulnerable stock” approach to setting fishing opportunities and is interested in discovering a more balanced approach to managing multi-species fisheries.
The commission is also reconsidering the “5 percent rule” in the Baltic Sea, Northern Sea, and western waters. The 5 percent rule requires that fishing quotes be set with a less than 5 percent change of a population dropping below its safe biological limit. That rule can force “abrupt” quota cuts multiple years in a row and create legal uncertainty, according to the commission.
The commission is collecting input over a four-week period, with submissions accepted through 23 June.
“In line with the commission’s communication on a simpler, clearer, and better-enforced E.U. rulebook, the objective is to make the implementation of the plans easier and to improve legal clarity, without undermining the key milestones of the common fisheries policy (CFP), including the achievement of the objective of reaching and maintaining the [maximum sustainable yield] exploitation rate,” the commission stated.
