Brussels, 26/01/2015 (Agence Europe) - The European Commission provided details on Monday 26 January of the measures to be taken to prevent the collapse of sea bass stocks in European waters.
The flagship is an emergency measure: the ban (already announced) on pelagic trawling for sea bass until the end of April 2015 (see EUROPE 11233). This ban will protect the stock when the fish gather together in shoals to spawn. The measure will come into effect immediately (once it has been formally adopted) and will apply in the Channel, the Celtic Sea, the Irish Sea and the south of the North Sea. The Commission says that the spawning season is already under way and will last until the end of April. Pelagic trawling is a prime source of sea bass mortality and reduces the spawning stock, having a 25% impact on the stock, the Commission states.
Recreational fishing will have to play its part too
“Other measures will follow in the coming days and weeks to make sure that all who fish for sea bass make a fair and balanced contribution to saving the stock”, said Fisheries Commissioner Karmenu Vella (our translation) at a press conference on Monday 26 January after the fisheries section of the Council.
Recreational fishing accounts for 25% of the sea bass catch and the Commission is looking at a limit of three fish per day per fisherman. The member states are also expected to set a minimum catch size of 42 centimetres so that fish are not caught before they have been able to reproduce. With over 1.3 million recreational anglers in France and another 800,000 in the UK, “many thousands of jobs also depend on recreational fishing”, says the Commission.
The Commission says that catch limits will have to be set for commercial fisheries other than pelagic trawling. “This is about saving sea bass stock and saving jobs in the commercial and recreational fishing sector. I am proud of the quick reaction to what is an immediate danger to the stock”, commented the commissioner.
The Commission is working with the member states concerned (France, United Kingdom, Belgium and Netherlands) to bring forward a proposal for the Council as soon as possible. Scientific advice is recommending an 80% reduction in sea bass catches to avoid the collapse of the stock. French fishermen take more than 70% of the sea bass catch, followed by their Belgian and Dutch counterparts. (LC)