On Wednesday 3 August, the European Commission adopted a proposal establishing a multi-annual plan for the management of stocks of demersal fish species (cod, haddock, plaice, saithe, sole, whiting and langoustine) in the North Sea.
The multi-annual plan for the North Sea includes the EU waters of the ICES zones IIa, IIIa and IV and concerns Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Sweden and the United Kingdom. The proportion of demersal species in the North Sea represents more than 70% of the entire fisheries sector and corresponds to more than €850 million in landed value (2012). The fact that the plan includes the United Kingdom is a problem, as the country is preparing to negotiate its withdrawal from the EU, potentially in 2019 or 2020.
The new plan for the North Sea is the first global plan for this maritime basin. The fisheries of the North Sea are highly complex: they are fished by vessels from at least seven coastal member states plus Norway. The vessels use a broad range of different fishing gears and their catches consist of a number of different species, such as cod and haddock, or plaice and sole. The proposal lays down a management plan which takes account of the interactions between these mixed fisheries.
This proposal, which is based on the agreement on the multi-annual plan for the Baltic Sea, requires the EU to lay down catch limits to re-establish and maintain fish stocks above levels to achieve maximum sustainable yield (MSY). The proposal will replace the current recovery plan for cod, as well as the plan for plaice and sole.
The aim of the plan is to achieve fishing mortality rates which are compatible with the principle of the maximum sustainable yield. The targets proposed are expressed in fishing mortality ranges for all species (including cod, sole, plaice).
The plan also lays down conservation reference levels expressed in tonnes of biomass of reproductive stock. The minimum reference level for the biomass of reproductive stock is 165,000 tonnes for North Sea cod, 88,000 tonnes for haddock and 230,000 tonnes for North Sea plaice. The safeguards and specific conservation measures are linked to the conservation reference levels. Where scientific advice states that any of the stocks concerned is below that level, the TAC (total allowable catch) for that stock should be reduced. This measure may, if necessary, be complemented by technical or emergency measures (fishing bans, closure of zones, for instance) by the Commission or the member states.
Provisions regarding the obligation to land catch (end of the discards system), to be adopted in the framework of regionalisation, are required to allow any future derogations to the landing obligation for species for which scientific evidence shows high survival rates and de minimis exemptions, in line with the development of scientific advice.
Lastly, control provisions are provided on prior notifications, logbooks and designated ports. For the prior notification and logbook requirements, the general rules must be adapted to the particularities of the North Sea and its demersal fisheries. As regards designated ports, there will be thresholds above which catches of demersal stocks should only be landed in ports with enhanced control. The plan will be re-evaluated every five years. (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)