Brussels, 23/04/2007 (Agence Europe) - Thanks to the counsel of the European Commission, France and Spain have reached an albeit fragile compromise on the experimental anchovy fishery in the Bay of Biscay. The fishery resumed on Monday 23 April, after France recalled to port the vessels which had started catching anchovy on 15 April, the date initially set in the Council decisions of December 2006 on fishing possibilities for 2007 (see EUROPE 9409).
Under the conditions established by the Commission, commercial fishing will start on Monday 23 April, at the same time as the “consort fishing” (assessment of the state of the stock by scientific vessels). The end of the fishery will be evaluated at a later stage, depending on the data collected. To avoid confrontation between the two fleets, the five French and thirteen Spanish vessels will operate in clearly delineated zones. Anchovy catches will be limited to 3 tonnes per vessel per day and the same sampling point must not be revisited for at least six days after previous sampling. In addition, all vessels must be equipped with satellite tracking systems (VMS) and have a scientific observer on board. Should the VMS malfunction, the vessel should immediately inform the national control authorities, cease fishing and return to port. Finally, there are measures to ensure that the fishermen do not disrupt the work of the research vessels. Tension remains high in the fishing community, because the Basque authorities want to prevent French caught and landed anchovy from crossing the border. (lc)