The International Council for the Exploration of the Seas (ICES) has recommended the 2013 total allowable catch (TAC) for mackerel should be cut by 15 percent, to 542,000 metric tons (MT).
ICES also recommended further reductions in overall catch in light of "irresponsible overfishing" by Iceland and the Faroe Islands that pushed catch levels above the scientific advice.
“For four years in a row now we have seen Iceland and the Faroes plundering the mackerel stock, setting their own vastly inflated quotas out with an international agreement — and as a result putting the future of our own fleet at risk,” said Richard Lochhead, Scotland fisheries secretary. “While Europe has finally brought forward sanction provisions, the process has taken far too long and this worrying scientific advice shows that much damage to the mackerel stock has already been done. Therefore it is infuriating and deeply frustrating that Scottish fishermen now face the prospect of reduced quotas.”
In February, protracted negotiations failed to secure a four-way Coastal States deal for 2012, leading to a third straight year without agreement. New mackerel talks for 2013 are set to commence in October.
ICES advice on pelagic stocks was published on Friday.
