Brussels, 10/09/2004 (Agence Europe) - The Council's working group on fisheries reached agreement on Thursday on a 2-day increase per month for haddock fishing in the North Sea by British vessels. Member States made good headway on the other chapter of the proposal aimed at banning trawling until the end of the year in the waters of the Azores, Madeira and the Canary Islands (EUROPE of 25 August 2004 for details of the proposal).
Haddock fishing: This part of the proposal allows the number of days spent at sea to be increased from 10 to 12 per month for British vessels fishing haddock in the North Sea. In order to be able to benefit from this provision, the vessels must be equipped with vessel monitoring systems (VMS) by satellite and do their fishing outside the cod protection zone.
The British delegation justifies the increase in haddock fishing by the fact that simultaneous catches of cod are rare in unprotected areas. Only Germany and Sweden expressed concern on this subject as, according to these delegations, the rise in fishing days for haddock could have an adverse effect on cod stocks. The European Commission gave these two countries confirmation that the percentage of cod catches is higher within the sensitive zones than it is outside the zones. Consequently, the rise in fishing days outside the protected zone should allow pressure on stocks to be reduced.
Protection of coral reefs in outlying areas: The Commission proposes to ban the use, in 2004, of bottom trawl vessels in the waters around the Azores, the Canary Islands and Madeira. The aim of this measure is to provisionally protect coral reefs located in these zones until a regulation on a definitive ban is adopted. The Commission made such a proposal back in February but European elections delayed the timetable of parliamentary opinions. The provisional measure proposed does not require EP consultation.
Work by Member State experts has made good progress. A compromise text was drawn up by the Dutch Presidency and Commission to take the concerns expressed by Spain into account. The text allows definition of the zones where the trawling ban applies. These include waters under the sovereignty or the jurisdiction of Member States in order to prevent the ban from brimming over onto Moroccan waters. Spain and Portugal state they are willing to accept the new text but must consult their capitals and the areas concerned (Canary Islands and the Azores). The latest uncertainty should be lifted at the next meeting of the Council's working group on fisheries, on 14 September. The proposal (comprising two sections, on haddock fishing and on the trawling ban in very outlying zones) could then be forwarded to the EU Council of Ministers for adoption without debate.