In that day’s most viewed website story from the British broadsheet The Guardian, human rights abuses on trawlers off West Africa were dramatically documented. While the study “All at Sea”, produced by the Environmental Justice Foundation (EJF), initially intended to focus on IUU (Illegal, unreported, unregulated) catches and overfishing, the “slavery” which they uncovered also … Continued
A recent study concludes that the physical damage wrought by bottom trawling has been significantly greater than that from other human activities combined – oil and gas exploration, waste disposal, and the laying of submarine communication cables. The study published in the PLoS One journal, an online science publication, investigated the impact of bottom trawling … Continued
Referring to legalities and taking no note of scientists’ fear for the stock, Iceland defends its unilaterally raising the mackerel TAC as “completely justified”. Johann Gudmundsson, a spokesman for the Icelandic Agriculture and Fisheries ministry, pointed out to the AFP news agency that his nation “has never been subject to a quota, and as a … Continued
The September Council meeting of the EU fisheries ministers expressed strong support for Commissioner Maria Damanaki in her efforts to counter Iceland’s and the Faroe Islands’ unilaterally raised “damaging” catch quotas for mackerel. Lacking a current agreement between the EU and the coastal states of Norway, Iceland and the Faroe Islands, the two latter states … Continued
Originally not planning to deal with fisheries issues, the EU Agriculture and Fisheries ministers have added the conflict with the Faroe Islands and Iceland over mackerel catches to the agenda of their 27 September Council meeting. In August, after Iceland and the Faeroe Islands have increased their mackerel TACs in the wake of stocks moving … Continued
Sweden’s Minister for Agriculture and Fisheries Eskil Erlandsson emerged as a surprising hair-breadth second in voter popularity in the national elections on 19 September, narrowly beaten only by Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt. Sweden has had a system in the last four elections where voters may check a candidate of choice on the party ballots, giving … Continued
Despite earlier claims from European Parliament legal experts that the present contract is in conflict with international law, the Commission has adopted a draft for a new agri-food and fisheries agreement with Morocco with no mention of the controversial issue of occupied Western Sahara. Western Sahara, originally a Spanish colony, has been occupied by Morocco … Continued
A genetically engineered salmon, termed “Frankenfish” by critics of the project, has passed the first step on the way to becoming the first GE animal approved for American dinner tables. The AquAdvantage salmon is developed in a way that transcends the fantasies of any SciFi writer: genetic material from Chinook (the largest Pacific salmon) and … Continued
Publishing its proposal for next year’s Baltic TACs, the EU Commission followed ICES go-ahead to raise quotas for both cod stocks, while it even went under ICES recommendations for both the Central and the Bothnian Sea/Bothnian Bay herring. The Commission proposal, however, suggested higher catch quotas than the International Council for the Exploration of the … Continued
On Monday 13 September, members of OCEAN2012 handed over a petition signed by 28,500 people to Commissioner Damanaki, asking her to “put environment first for people’s sake” in the upcoming CFP reform. Over 60 representatives of OCEAN2012 from 15 Member States met the Commissioner outside the Commission building in Brussels to hand over the signatures. … Continued