Excess nutrients, underwater noise, plastic waste, other types of pollution and unsustainable fishing still affect European seas despite very ambitious EU legislation, according to the report on the implementation of the 'Marine Strategy' Framework Directive (Directive 2008/56/EC), published on Thursday 25 June together with a report from the European Environment Agency (EEA).
The Commission's report shows that almost half of Europe's coastal waters are subject to intense eutrophication. Although EU chemicals regulations have reduced the number of contaminants, there is an increased accumulation of plastics and chemical residues in most marine species. Thanks to the EU's Common Fisheries Policy, almost all landings in the North-East Atlantic come from healthy stocks. But this is not the case in the Mediterranean.
"Member States will not achieve the Good Environmental Status they were legally required to achieve across all their marine waters by 2020", said Environment, Fisheries and Oceans Commissioner Virginijus Sinkevičius in a statement. He announced the launch of a project to identify the strengths and weaknesses of this legislation, with a view to remedying the weaknesses. This 2008 Directive, which is a key tool of the EU 2030 Biodiversity Strategy, will be reviewed by mid-2023 and, if necessary, amended in the framework of the European Green Deal.
The EEA report 'Marine Messages II' shows that the historical and, in some cases, current use of European seas is incurring a heavy price in terms of changing the composition of marine species and habitats and altering the overall physical and chemical composition of the seas.
To help the EU achieve its goal of clean, healthy and productive seas, the EEA recommends mainly ecosystem-based management. See the Commission's report: https://bit.ly/37Y9x3i (Original version in French by Aminata Niang)