WRITTEN QUESTION E-2896/96 by Clive Needle (PSE) to the Commission (31 October 1996)

Subject: Management and control of North Sea fishing measures

In response to Question No. E-1641/96 ((OJ C 356, 25.11.1996, p. 72.)) regarding North Sea fishing, the Commission stated 'The Commission does not intend to put a complete stop to these economically important fisheries, nor will this be necessary when these fisheries are adequately managed and controlled'.

Will the Commission now set out:

1. How it plans to manage and control the massive North Sea sand eel fishing which remains largely unrelated?

2. What timescale is envisaged for its plans?

3. In this context is the Commission aware of the recent UK Joint Nature Conservation Committee proposal that the part of the North Sea known as 'Wee Bankie' should be declared off-limits to industrial fishing, and how will its plans incorporate this?

Answer given by Mrs Bonino on behalf of the Commission (13 December 1996)

1. Fishing for North Sea sand eel is subject to minimum mesh sizes, combined with a minimum percentage of sand eel in the total catch. Since sand eel is a short-lived species, which is able to quickly replenish itself, it has up till now not been considered necessary to set catch limits for this species. This situation has existed at least since the common fisheries policy came into force in January 1983.

The advisory committee on fishery management (ACFM), the authoritative source of scientific advice on this and related issues, has never advocated setting catch limits for sand eel. In its latest report (November 1996) ACFM notes that despite large catches the sand eel stock appears to be within safe biological limits. Significantly, ACFM also notes that sand eel catches contain little by-catch of other species.

In response to a request by the United Kingdom government to give advice on the appropriate level for a precautionary total allowable catch (TAC) for North Sea sand eel, were it necessary to adopt such a measure, ACFM notes that a precautionary TAC could be about 1,100,000 tons. ACFM further notes that lower TACs would require reliable predictions or real-time monitoring of recruitment to the fishery, both of which do not exist at the moment.

Clearly, the latest ACFM advice gives no indication of North Sea sand eel being in need of any special protective measures.

The problem of Community fleet overcapacity is being addressed through the multi-annual guidance programmes which set capacity reduction targets for the fleets of each of the Member States. All fishing vessels in the Community fleet, including those fishing for sand eel, come within the scope of the programmes and are subject to reduction rates which depend on the state of the stocks that they exploit.

Since fishing for sand eel is regulated by means of mesh sizes and target catch percentages, these fisheries are subject to control and enforcement. The latter activities come under the competence of Member States. The Commission has proposed as from 1997 to equip with satellite tracking devices vessels catching fish for reduction to fish meal and fish oil.

2. Since the Commission has no specific plans as regards North Sea sand eel, no time scale is envisaged. However, the installation of satellite tracking devices would allow examination of the possibilities of restrictions on sand eel fisheries in the medium term.

3. The Commission is aware of the industrial fisheries issue regarding the Wee Bankie area, though it has not seen a proposal from the United Kingdom joint nature conservation committee. So far, the Commission has received no formal request from any Member State to take action as regards this matter. There is no present intention to address this issue on a Community level.