On October 14th, the European Commission adopted its proposal for fishing opportunities for 2023 for the Mediterranean and the Black Seas. The proposal promotes the sustainable management of fish stocks in the Mediterranean and the Black Seas and delivers on the political commitments made in the MedFish4Ever and Sofia Declarations. It reflects the Commission's ambition to make fisheries in these two sea basins sustainable, in line with the 2030 Strategy of the General Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean (GFCM), which is the regional fisheries management organisation competent for the conservation and management of fish stocks in the Mediterranean and the Black Seas.
Main decisions
Regarding the Mediterranean Sea, the proposal incorporates measures for red coral and dolphinfish, in line with adopted GFCM decisions. For the stocks where the GFCM transitional measures are expiring at the end of 2022 (such as blackspot seabream and deep-water shrimp stocks in the Ionian, the Levant Seas and the Strait of Sicily), the proposal will be updated after the 2022 GFCM annual session, where new decisions are expected to be adopted.
In the case of the Adriatic Sea, the proposal continues the implementation of the GFCM MAP for demersal stocks and the GFCM MAP for small pelagic stocks. For small pelagic stocks, the proposal continues the implementation of the transitional period of the MAP. It includes a further level of reduction of catches, based on the transitional internal share between the Member States, as well as the fleet capacity ceiling for vessels targeting small pelagics. For demersal stocks, it proposes a decrease of the fishing effort in line with the future GFCM decision and the goal to reach MSY by 2026. The decision will be adopted at the 2022 GFCM annual session.
Finally, concerning the Black Sea, the proposal includes catch limits and quotas for turbot and sprat. For sprat, the Commission proposes to maintain the same catch limit as in 2022. For turbot, the levels of the total allowable catch (TAC) and quotas will be set and adopted at the 2022 GFCM annual session.
For More Information
- Background and next steps
- Proposal for a Council Regulation fixing for 2023 the fishing opportunities for certain fish stocks and groups of fish stocks applicable in the Mediterranean and Black Seas