Brussels, 28/09/2006 (Agence Europe) - On 28 September, the European Commission adopted its proposal on the total allowable catches (TACs) and quotas for deep-sea species for 2007 and 2008. To protect a fragile and often overfished resource, it proposes a reduction of 33% per year on quotas of orange roughy, blue ling, deep sea sharks, black scabbardfish and tusk. A 15% reduction is proposed for round-nosed grenadier to the west of the British Isles and 45% for the zones further to the south. Fisheries ministers will discuss the proposals at the October Council, prior to reaching agreement at the Council of 20-21 November.
The Commission will present a proposal to reduce the number of authorised days fishing for deep-sea species at a later date. Commercial exploitation of deep-sea fish stocks became economically viable at the start of the 90s, when certain stocks, like cod were suffering. This fishery is exercised mainly by France, Spain and Portugal. More recently, other countries like the United Kingdom and Ireland, and to a lesser extend Poland and the Baltic countries have become involved. Fishing zones are located in the North-East Atlantic (from the Azores to the Barentz Sea, northern North Sea, Skagerrak and Kattegat). Deep-sea fish are caught by pelagic trawlers and demersal trawlers (bottom trawls), gill nets and long-lines.
Until 2002, there was no regulation of deep-sea fisheries in the EU. In that year, the Council adopted TACs and quotas for the 2003-2004 period and introduced a fishing licence scheme. In 2004, other deep-sea species became subject to TACs and the EU closed a fishing zone (situated to the west of the UK and Ireland) to protect the orange roughy. Finally, the Council decided to reduce fishing effort by 10% in 205 and the same in 2006.