Yes, according to one new study, which argues that current use of the rules and the lack of implementation of some of them benefit a privileged group of large-scale fishers at the expense of smaller ones.
The study, published by Seas At Risk and its members BUND, Ecologistas en Acción and Sciaena, in cooperation with Only One, finds that despite their high efficiency and productivity, small-scale fishers often experience low wages, part-time employment and exclusion from decisions.
”Although EU fisheries regulations are comprehensive, insufficient implementation and oversight undermine their effectiveness, leading to unintended consequences,” said Bruno Nicostrate, senior fisheries policy officer at Seas At Risk.
”Policymakers must seize every opportunity to make European fisheries fairer and more sustainable. This is essential to ensure fishers earn a decent livelihood, protect coastal communities from decline and safeguard the long-term health of our marine ecosystems.”
Vital role
Overall, the study finds that small-scale fishers’ vital role in sustaining local economies and promoting low-impact fishing is often overlooked by public authorities.
This oversight is exacerbated by subsidies that favour once more large-scale fleets often sustaining big subsidy-dependant businesses and destructive fishing practices.
The study finds that challenges highlighted in the study are not due to inherent flaws in the legislation, but rather to its inconsistent implementation.
While the law provides various opportunities to transition to low-impact fisheries and support small-scale fishers, policy-makers not only fail to utilise these options, but they often even fail to meet the law’s compulsory minimum requirements.
As a result, fishing vessels have decreased in number but the the ones that remain are, on average, larger and more powerful, revealing an industrialisation trend.
Similarly, the concentration of power through the ownership of multiple and larger vessel fleets, the acquisition of significant shares of quotas and the control of various stages of the distribution process, has left the fisheries sector in the hands of a reduced number of large players.
By way of resolution, the NGOs point out in the study that the establishment of dedicated quotas for small-scale fishers and the distribution based on social and environmental criteria rather than solely on the principle of relative stability and historical catch criteria, would represent a significant step forward for small-scale, low-impact fishers.
Similarly, ensuring a transparent allocation of fishing rights would contribute to uncover excessive concentration of power, and pave the way for fairer and more equitable access to resources.
The Common Fisheries Policy is currently undergoing a comprehensive evaluation, the findings of which are expected to be published in 2026.
