The EU Council agreed on total allowable catches in the Atlantic and the North Sea for 2019.

Council of Ministers agrees on catch limits for 2019 for the Atlantic and the North Sea

EUROPEAN UNION
Wednesday, December 19, 2018, 22:20 (GMT + 9)

The European Union Council of Ministers reached agreement on 2019 catch limits for the main commercial fish stocks in the Atlantic and North Sea.

Map with different fishing areas in the EU. (click on the map to enlarge it)

Under the reached agreement, the number of fish stocks managed at maximum sustainable yield (MSY) levels will rise to 59, with additional protection for the European eel.

According to the Council, the negotiated agreement is based on a strong commitment to the objectives of the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP): environmental, economic and social sustainability, it was also stated that EU fishermen in the Atlantic and the North Sea will be able to increase their catches of a number of healthy stocks.

The stocks whose catches will be increased include plaice in Skagerrak/Kattegat, the Southern hake stock, Western and Southern horse mackerel, cod, sole and plaice in the Irish Sea, and sole and megrim in the Bay of Biscay.

During the meeting of ministers, the issue of choke species in mixed fisheries was addressed through enhanced inter-area and inter-species flexibility.

Moreover, a new quota exchange mechanism was created for member states without a quota for by-catches in five fisheries: cod in the Celtic sea and west of Scotland, whiting in the Irish sea and west of Scotland, and plaice in the south-western part of area 7.

On the other hand, the Council agreed to further protect European eel by extending the mandatory closures agreed for 2018 to recreational fisheries and glass eel fisheries. These measures will cover brackish waters such as estuaries, coastal lagoons and transitional waters, and will ensure consistency with the measures on eel in the Mediterranean Sea.

Finally, concerning northern seabass, commercial fisheries will remain prohibited with some exceptions, taking into account the positive developments reflected in the scientific advice. It was decided that allowed catches would increase to 5.5 tonnes/vessel for hooks and line fishery, to 400kg for two months for trawlers, to 210 kg for seines, and 1.4 tonne per year for fixed gillnets.

Figures in the Celctic Seas fisheries overview show the spatial distribution of landings for certain species in the ecoregion. (Photo: ICES)

The Council agreement largely confirmed the initial Commission proposal, which established fishing opportunities in the form of yearly total allowable catches (TACs) and quotas by fish stocks in the different fishing zones, and fully respects scientific advice.

TACs and quotas concern stocks that the EU manages either autonomously or jointly with third countries, for instance with Norway in the North Sea and the Skagerrak, or through agreements reached in the framework of Regional Fisheries Management Organisations (RFMOs).

Based on the scientific advice provided by the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES), the Commission had proposed for 2019 to: (1) increase or keep current catch limits for 62 stocks, (2) reduce it for 22 stocks, and (3) set new by-catch quotas at low level for 8 stocks so as to reduce the fishing pressure. The Commission had also proposed a set of measures for northern seabass to allow higher catches for hooks and line fishery and a bag limit for recreational fisheries.

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