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A new study released today by Seas at Risk, Oceana and ClientEarth, environmental NGOs working on marine conservation issues, shows that, despite EU nature laws and international biodiversity commitments which bind Member States to protect their Marine Protected Areas (MPA), no EU country has submitted plans to phase out destructive fishing in these areas. (1)
Bottom trawling is a fishing method that involves one or more boats pulling heavy nets along the ocean floor in an effort to catch fish and other marine species. It is one of the most indiscriminate fishing methods, resulting in ecosystem loss, the release of carbon stored in the seabed and high levels of bycatch and fish discards. Bottom trawling still occurs in the majority of Irish MPAs. Last year an independent poll showed that 86% of Irish people support stricter protection of MPAs and 78% would support a ban on bottom trawling in these areas. Research shows that the EU is falling short of protecting their MPAs as destructive activities are still allowed in 80% of them (3)
It is one year since the deadline lapsed for countries to submit their roadmaps outlining how they plan to phase out bottom trawling in MPAs through the EU Marine Action Plan (2). Only 9 countries have submitted their roadmaps and Ireland is not included in this. The analysis shows that some countries have measures in place in some MPAs but many are still threatened by bottom trawling. This could be a possible breach of EU laws and several NGOs from France, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain and Sweden have filed lawsuits against national governments for their failure to protect their MPAs from destructive fishing.
The analysis looked at Bulgaria, Cyprus, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Slovenia and Spain as these are the only countries who have submitted their plans, while Estonia refused to disclose theirs. National measures in place in Natura 2000 MPAs designated to protect the seabed and marine species were examined in the study. None of the roadmaps provided a plan to phase out bottom trawling in MPAs by 2030 and only one country (Germany) has reported a fisheries joint recommendation. Joint recommendations are when more than one country which has fishing interests in an area put in a recommendation for protective measures through the Common Fisheries Policy. The plans were not strong on details on what national measures will be adopted.
Oceana, Seas at Risk and ClientEarth are making an urgent call for the European Commission to carry out the necessary follow-up on the Marine Action Plan, including:
– initiating legal action for failing to respect EU nature laws;
– closing MPAs to bottom trawling under the Common Fisheries Policy (in the absence of necessary regional fisheries measures – known as joint recommendations); and
– putting forward new legislation via the Ocean Pact to ensure that marine areas are truly protected from destructive activities like bottom trawling.
The Irish Wildlife Trust adds their support to the EU level calls to action and are also calling on the Irish government to submit their national roadmap. We contacted ministers responsible for this in the previous government several times on this issue. The roadmaps must include detailed plans on how they plan to phase out this destructive practice, including the compensation methods which will be necessary for small-scale fishers still using this method. The government must effectively manage its inshore fish populations and give fishers the options and tools they need to enable a just transition. Many habitats are in bad ecological condition in Ireland and there are new restoration thresholds in place through the NRL which will require stricter management of MPAs. Initiating Joint Recommendations through the Common Fisheries Policy and including this in their National Restoration Plans for the NRL will be vital in protecting offshore marine ecosystems which will in turn help to improve inshore fish populations.
Grace Carr, Marine Advocacy Officer with The Irish Wildlife Trust said, ‘It is really disappointing that the Irish government has not submitted their roadmap or detailed any actions in how they plan to effectively protect their seabed MPAs and phase out destructive fishing. It shows a great deal of apathy and a lack of ambition to truly protect and restore Irish waters. We hope to see ambitious measures included within the upcoming National Restoration Plans, including plans to initiate Joint Recommendations in order to effectively restore degraded marine ecosystems.’
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Contact: grace@iwt.ie