The EU and the United Kingdom have agreed on fishing quotas for 2023 in their shared waters, the European Commission announced on Tuesday, with environmental NGOs denouncing limits often set beyond scientific advice at the risk of to fuel overfishing.
After weeks of talks, the British and Europeans have agreed on the “
total allowable catches
” authorized for “
more than 74 stocks
”, in the waters whose resources they jointly manage in the Atlantic and the North Sea.
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The agreement reached "
guarantees fishing possibilities of more than 350,000 tonnes for the EU fleet, estimated at around 1 billion euros on the basis of historical landing prices corrected for inflation
", noted the European executive.
Additional quotas will be set later for sprat (North Sea and English Channel) and sandeel (North Sea).
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“
The agreement will support the livelihoods of coastal communities on both sides of the Channel, in the Irish Sea and the North Sea, give them visibility, and strengthen the sustainable management of resources
,” said European Commissioner Virginijus. Sinkevicius, recalling that the quotas were set on the basis of "the
best available scientific advice
".
Conversely, environmental NGOs believe that it will lead to further weakening of already vulnerable stocks.
"
There are more quotas set in accordance with scientific recommendations
", but many greatly exceed them, according to the coordination of the NGO Oceana, observing that London and Brussels "
continue to grant quotas for a large number of stocks, the recovery of which will be jeopardized by continued overfishing
”.
While scientists recommended stopping all catches for the most depleted stocks, such as cod in the west of Scotland, whiting in the Irish Sea or herring in the Celtic Sea, the EU and the United Kingdom "
continue to allow excessive incidental catches of these stocks
" by vessels fishing for other species, deplores Vera Coelho, of Oceana.
"
This will make their recovery to sustainable levels almost impossible (...) Their populations risk collapsing even further
", she warns, believing that London and Brussels "
break their own environmental laws
" and "
endanger the long-term viability of the fishing industry
”.
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“
The stocks of cod and whiting are already depleted, collateral victims of non-selective trawls that sweep everything in their path trying to catch langoustines and haddock.
Unless we restrict this fishery, these stocks may never recover
,” added Jenni Grossmann, of the NGO ClientEarth.
ClientEarth has taken EU legal action against Member States for setting fishing quotas deemed “
unsustainable
” despite the regulatory obligation to end overfishing.