Countries around the Northeast Atlantic are unilaterally setting quota limits despite ongoing discussions aimed at reaching sharing agreements, says the North Atlantic Pelagic Advisory Group.
The Northeast Atlantic Coastal States, namely the EU, UK, Norway, Faroes, Iceland, Greenland and Russia have met to resolve sharing disputes for three pelagic stocks – Northeast Atlantic mackerel, Atlanto-Scandian herring and Northeast Atlantic blue whiting – having committed to ensuring that TAC does not exceed scientific advice.
According to NAPA, despite these ongoing discussions, the EU, UK, Norway and the Faroes have independently set limits for blue whiting and Atlanto-Scandian herring, putting the sustainability of these stocks at risk.
“There needs to be movement on quota shares otherwise coastal states won’t stop overfishing these prime Northeast Atlantic pelagic stocks,” said Dr Tom Pickerell, NAPA project lead. “This is another example of coastal states stepping away from collective responsibility, and genuine, collaborative decision-making.”
Overfishing
Last year, stocks of blue whiting and Atlanto-Scandian herring were overfished by 30% and 39% respectively. NAPA is encouraging coastal states to make more sustainable decisions for these globally important stocks, establishing a policy-based fishery improvement project (FIP) for Northeast Atlantic mackerel and herring, and an equivalent MarinTrust FIP for blue whiting.
The organisation has also published a position paper advising coastal states on measures to agree TACs. The paper includes actions such as agreeing on a quota allocation system, employing a dispute resolution mechanism, and considering a cap on international catches.
