Bayonne, 02/10/2008 (Agence Europe) - Speaking at the 36th general assembly of the Conference of Peripheral Maritime Regions (CPMR) in Bayonne on Thursday 2 October, European Commissioner for Fisheries Joe Borg attempted to respond to the concerns expressed by the participants, particularly that of Jean-Yves Le Drian, President of the Brittany region (France), who spoke on behalf of the “Aquamarina” group.
During his introduction, Mr Le Drian called on the European Commission to take the human dimension into account in its fisheries policy and not just the tonnage of the boats. He also expressed his concern about the motorways of the sea, “the levers put in place do not appear to us to match the scale of ambition contained in this concept”.
During his speech, Joe Borg welcomed the fact that the CPMR was a “vital partner” of the Commission and explained that integrated maritime policy will be able to respond to “a certain number of problems” brought up by the peripheral maritime regions: transport, maritime surveillance, research… “Coastal regions have a major role to play in implementation of an integrated maritime policy” he said.
He hammered home the fact that “this concerted policy will improve the quality of life for all European citizens”. He urged representatives from the peripheral maritime regions to “take this message to the four corners of Europe”.
Climate change and erosion. He returned to the theme of the motorways of the sea, previously raised by Mr Le Drian, and underlined their importance. He affirmed that “the communication we recently published on a free maritime area means that the EU should have a more flexible form of transport”. During his speech, the commissioner also recognised that integrated European maritime policy involving a purely sectoral approach would not be sufficient. Mr Borg said that in the context of maritime surveillance, which is “one of the priorities of the French Presidency of the EU”, the objectives are two-fold: improving surveillance of cross-border areas and integrating maritime surveillance systems so that they are more efficient.
The commissioner for fisheries also returned to the subject of climate change and its consequences on the peripheral maritime regions. He stressed that these regions suffered from erosion more than others and had to meet the significant economic consequences of this phenomenon. He indicated that the White Paper on adaptation measures for tacking the adverse effects of climate change will appear on 21 October and include a special chapter on coastal regions. He also confirmed that the communication on peripheral regions, which comes out at the beginning of November, will also be partly focusing on maritime policy.
Asked by a French representative of the Brittany region to denounce the “simplistic, brutal and frustrating method” of boat destruction, Mr Borg replied that the Commission was not just encouraging destruction of the fleet but also “conversions to safer boat models”. Borg concluded that “we need to adapt to the rise in fuel prices. The question we need to ask ourselves is: 'How do we develop a sustainable fishing policy?'”. (L.B.S./transl.rh)