At the start of international negotiations in Rome in preparation for the COP15 on biological diversity (CBD15, Kunming - China, October), the European Commissioner for Environment, Oceans and Fisheries, Virginijus Sinkevičius, announced, on Tuesday 25 February, that he had written to 22 EU Member States to express alarm at the plight of dolphins and other marine animals in Europe and to call for immediate EU action to tackle the problem of incidental catches of endangered species.
The problem is alarming "in EU waters, particularly in the Bay of Biscay and the Celtic Sea", the Commissioner stressed, writing to the environment and fisheries ministers "to urge them to collaborate in finding a solution for this situation". He intends to raise the issue at the forthcoming Environment and Fisheries Councils of the EU.
"The levels of by-catch we are facing are not acceptable. It can result in the extinction of local populations of protected species", he warns, noting that 1,200 dead dolphins are reported to have washed up on the beaches of the Bay of Biscay between December 2018 and March 2019.
Mr Sinkevičius recalls that it is the responsibility of the European Commission and the Member States to ensure full implementation of existing legislation - the Birds and Habitats Directive, the Technical Measures Regulation of the Common Fisheries Policy and the Marine Strategy Framework Directive.
On Monday, the Commissioner met for the first time with the Director of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN Europe), Luc Bas, and his teams to lay the foundations for "joint efforts for biodiversity" in the run-up to the post-2020 global action plan to be agreed in Kunming. The protection of 30% of marine areas might be included in the future EU 2030 Biodiversity Strategy, which the Commission may present on 25 March, according to its provisional timetable (see EUROPE 12422/1). (Original version in French by Aminata Niang)