Protection of vulnerable marine ecosystems in the high seas

The rapporteur, Duarte FREITAS (EPP-ED, PT), welcomes the Commission proposal but is putting forward a number of amendments which he considers to be important for the general balance of the regulation.

In coastal areas, the management and protection of ecosystems, in line with Community guidelines, are the responsibility of the coastal states. In international waters, the protection of the marine environment is generally laid down by regional maritime conventions, where these exist, while the adoption of measures for the protection and management of marine living resources and the regulation of the impact of fishing on vulnerable ecosystems comes under the responsibility of Regional Fisheries Management Organisations (RFMO). However, there are high-sea areas that are not covered by any organisation or regional fisheries management convention, and this, in practice, is tantamount to an encouragement to engage in destructive fishery activities.

The main aim of this proposal is to fill this vacuum and take the lead in regulating fishing activities in such areas. The proposed regulation implements the recommendations issued by the General Assembly of the United Nations on measures to eliminate destructive fishing practices that threaten vulnerable marine ecosystems in the high seas. The proposal applies to EU vessels operating in the high seas in areas that are not subject to regulation by a RFMO and thus require unilateral flag State regulation.

In order to conduct fishing activities with bottom gears in the high seas, Community fishing vessels must have a special fishing permit. The applications for these fishing permits shall be accompanied by a detailed fishing plan specifying in particular:

• The intended location of the activities

• The targeted species

• The depth at which the gears will be deployed

• The configuration of the bathymetric profile of the seabed in the intended fishing grounds

According to the Fisheries Committee, the type of gear should be mentioned, in addition to the depths, given that each type of equipment represents a different potential threat to the ecosystems. The fishing plan should also specify the species likely to be taken as by-catch, MEPs say.

Given that the specific conditions for the validation of fishing permits in particular areas is contained in Articles 4 and 5 of the proposal, MEPs in the committee consider that the depth restrictions proposed in Article 6 ("The use of bottom gears at depths beyond 1000 m of depth shall be prohibited") are totally unnecessary. Moreover, there are no scientific studies which prove that vulnerable marine ecosystems exist or cease to exist above or below this particular limit, adds the report.

Other amendments are intended to simplify procedures, an essential factor in protecting the ecosystems in question, and to add a reference to the work now under way in the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO).

Member States should be given some time to prepare for the necessary new administrative procedures. Therefore, the rapporteur proposes that the regulation enters into force 30 days after its publication in the Official Journal of the EU, instead of on the seventh day following that of its publication, as indicated by the Commission.

The report was adopted with 24 votes in favour and 3 against.