The EU Council of Fisheries Ministers, expressing concern that fishing is adversely affecting shark populations and ecosystems, has officially welcomed the European Commission''s Plan of Action for Sharks.
The Council also called for specific follow-up action by the Commission, including, as a priority, a proposal to strengthen the EU ban on shark finning.
The "Council Conclusions," agreed last week by all EU Fisheries Ministers, serve to encourage and guide implementation of the Shark Plan and set related priorities.
"The Fisheries Council's strong response to the Commission's Shark Plan echoes pleas for shark conservation from tens of thousands of European citizens," said Uta Bellion, Director of the European Marine Programme of the Pew Environment Group, "Responsibility to heed these calls now falls back to the Commission through proposals for better controls on shark fishing, starting with a stricter ban on shark finning,"
Highlighting the biological characteristics - slow growth, late maturity, few young - that make most sharks particularly vulnerable to overfishing, the Ministers stressed the need for urgent action and the importance of setting shark fishing limits in line with scientific advice.
The Commission's Shark Plan, released in February 2009, aims to broaden knowledge about sharks, ensure sustainable catches, and harmonize internal and external EU shark policies. The plan also commits to improvements in the EU finning ban, but the Commission has yet to deliver a legislative proposal to do so.
