Communication from the Commission to the Council and the European Parliament - Improving consultation on Community fisheries management
Date: 2006-05-24
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: authorised catch, common fisheries policy, conservation of fish stocks, drafting of EU law, exploitation of resources, fishery management, fishery resources, fishing regulations

COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES 

Brussels, 24.5.2006 
COM(2006) 246 final 

COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE COUNCIL AND 
THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT 

Improving consultation on Community fisheries management 

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TABLE OF CONTENTS 

1. 

2. 

2.1. 

2.2. 

2.3. 

3. 

3.1. 

3.2. 

3.3. 

3.4. 

3.5. 

3.6. 

4. 

Introduction .................................................................................................................. 3 

Forecasting and Managing Fishing Opportunities ....................................................... 4 

Advisory methods and data needs................................................................................ 4 

Current Procedure ........................................................................................................ 4 

Stakeholders' views ...................................................................................................... 6 

recommendations for improving the system ................................................................ 6 

Changing the fishing year ............................................................................................ 6 

Changing the scientific schedule of stock assessments................................................ 7 

Third country aspects ................................................................................................... 7 

Earlier consultation with EU stakeholders on fisheries management decisions .......... 8 

Changing the timing of legislative proposals and decisions ........................................ 9 

Separating quota regulations from other management instruments........................... 10 

Conclusion: A new calendar for the fisheries management debate ........................... 11 

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1. 

INTRODUCTION 

In order to ensure “the broad involvement of stakeholders at all stages of the policy 
from conception to implementation” (Article 2(2) of Council Regulation 2371/2002), 
the  current  procedures  for  adopting  annual  decisions  on  Community  fisheries 
management need to be changed. 

Fishing opportunities available to European Community fishermen are normally set 
annually  at  a  meeting  of  the  Agriculture  and  Fisheries  Council  in  late  December. 
The adopted regulation comes into force on 1st January of the next year, and includes 
decisions setting the TACs and quotas available to Member States, permitted levels 
of fishing effort by gear type and by area, and some technical measures concerning 
the permitted fishing gear to be used during that year. 

The Council's decision is based on a proposal from the Commission, as is required by 
the Treaties. Up to now, the Commission has issued its proposal very late in the year 
in order that the latest scientific and technical information can be taken into account. 
This  timing  implies  that  very  limited  time  is  available  for  consultation  with  stake-
holders. 

The  depleted  state  of  many  fish  stocks  has  recently  required  more  wide-ranging 
conservation  measures.  TAC  reductions  alone  have  proven  insufficient,  and  a 
package  of  measures  including  effort  management,  technical  measures  and  control 
and  inspection  provisions  has  proven  necessary.  The  definition  of  such  measures 
within the short time-frame of the annual decision-making process described above 
has proven difficult. 

The  Commission  undertook  in  2005  an  informal  consultation  process  with 
stakeholders and the Member States about alternative working methods for preparing 
Community  fisheries  management  decisions.  Many  Member  States  were  open  to 
considering changes, although most were reluctant to alter the period to which TACs 
apply. The Commission was invited to explore the possibilities of obtaining scientific 
advice  for  fisheries  management  earlier  in  the  year.  Many  Member  States 
encouraged the Commission to engage in early discussions with Regional Advisory 
Councils  in  relation  to  decisions  about  fishing  opportunities.  However,  some 
Member  States  considered  that  the  time  pressure  built  into  the  present  system  was 
helpful in reaching decisions efficiently. 

The  Commission  has  already  taken  steps  to  reduce  the  accumulation  of  fisheries 
management  decisions  at  the  years'  end.  In  2005,  a  separate  and  earlier  proposal 
concerning the TACs for stocks in the Baltic Sea was presented by the Commission. 
Technical  discussions  were  held  with  Member  States  throughout  the  year  in 
preparation  of  decisions  about  effort  management,  setting  TACs  and  associated 
issues.  TACs  for  deep-sea  species  are  already  set  in  a  separate  Regulation  for  two 
years at a time. 

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More  improvements  are  necessary,  particularly  to  allow  for  a  meaningful 
consultation  with  stake-holders.  This  paper  proposes  a  new  working  method  for 
preparing  Council  decisions  on  annual  fishing  opportunities  and  associated 
conditions  within  the  Community.  The  aim  is  to  improve  the  consultation  process 
with  the  stakeholders  as  well  as  to  achieve  a  better  coordination  between  the 
Commission,  Member  States  and  scientific  advisors  concerning  the  long-term  aims 
of  fisheries  management  and  the  means  to  reach  those  aims,  in  advance  of  the 
presentation of Commission proposals for annual fisheries management. The timing 
of the presentation of Commission proposals would also be changed, at least in part. 

Enhanced consultation with the stake-holders will not affect the Commission’s right 
of initiative. The objective of such consultation is to improve the knowledge basis for 
the Commission’s proposal, and to obtain advice from stake-holders. 

2. 

FORECASTING AND MANAGING FISHING OPPORTUNITIES 

2.1. 

Advisory methods and data needs 

The advisory and management system for fisheries management generally in use in 
the Community was developed at the inception of the  Common  Fisheries Policy in 
the  early  1980s.  At  this  time  fish  stocks  were  not  considered  to  be  at  risk  and  the 
main concern was not so much to manage the sustainable development of fisheries as 
to forecast the short-term catch that could be taken from each fish stock in order to 
establish national quotas and relative stability shares. 

The short-term “catch option” form of advice provided by scientific bodies such as 
ICES  reflected  this  perception  and  was  formulated  with  reference  to  the  assumed 
catch that would be taken under unchanged fishing rates, so long as the stock size did 
not fall under a minimum biological levels. 

With  the  development  of  the  precautionary approach  in  fisheries  management  after 
the adoption of the UN straddling stocks agreement in 1995, advice was sought with 
reference to the highest catch that could be taken without prejudicing the spawning 
biomass of the stocks in the short term, or without developing fishing mortality rates 
that would cause an excessively high risk to the spawning stock in the longer term. In 
2002,  the  Community  incorporated  the  precautionary  approach  as  well  as  the 
implementation of the ecosystem approach to fisheries management in its framework 
regulation  for  the  Common  Fisheries  Policy.  Furthermore,  the  Community  and  its 
Member  States  committed  themselves  in  2002  to  maintain  and  restore  stocks  to 
levels that can produce high yields, as defined in the Plan of Implementation of the 
World Summit on Sustainable Development agreed at Johannesburg in 2002. 

2.2. 

Current Procedure 

The Community tradition of fisheries management based on a short-term forecasting 
methodology has inadvertently made decision-making more difficult.  

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Firstly, because decisions are focused on the short-term rather than the long term, it 
has hindered the proper discussion of long-term management. This was recognised in 
the reform process of the Common Fisheries Policy which resulted in the creation of 
a legal basis for long-term management1. 

Secondly, it has created a need for short-term forecasts to be as accurate as possible. 
This has meant that scientific assessments have to be delayed until later in the year so 
that the latest information from surveys can be used in the forecasting process. 

Thirdly,  generally  high  rates  of  fishing  have  led  to  a  situation,  particularly  in 
demersal fisheries, whereby a large part of the catches taken in any year are made up 
of  young  fish  that  were  not  available  to  the  fishery  in  the  previous  year.  This  has 
reinforced  the  need  for  the  use  of  "last-minute"  surveys  for  catch  forecasting 
purposes. 

Fourthly, for a number of important stocks (e.g. cod stocks in the North Sea, in the 
Kattegat,  in  the  Irish  Sea,  in  the  Baltic  Sea,  plaice  in  the  Skagerrak  and  Kattegat, 
North  Sea  haddock,  Bay  of  Biscay  anchovy),  only  a  small  part  of  the  fish  stock 
survives  from  one  year  to  the  next.  This  has  the  potential  to  cause  instability  in 
fishing  opportunities  because  recruitment  levels  can  change  substantially  between 
years.  For  example,  the  North  Sea  haddock  TAC  was  altered  on  average  by  32% 
each year in the period 1988-2005. Large swings in fishing opportunities are difficult 
to manage, both in terms of the market for fish and the employment of fishermen. 

This  complex  of  problems has led  to a compressed  timetable for  scientific analysis 
and management decisions for most demersal fish stocks: 

•  in  September  the  last  surveys  are  completed  and  the  data  are  analysed  on  board 

the research vessels; 

•  in early October scientific assessments are completed and the results presented to 
the  Advisory  Committee  for  Fisheries  Management  of  the  International  Council 
for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES); 

•  in  late  October  advice  is  issued  by  the  ICES  to  its  clients,  the  European 

Community, Norway, Iceland, NEAFC and others; 

•  in  November  the  scientific  advice  is  analysed  by  the  Commission  which  also 
consults  the  Scientific,  Technical  and  Economic  Committee  for  Fisheries  and 
stakeholders,  and  negotiations  take  place  with  Norway  and  other  costal  states 
concerning jointly managed stocks; 

•  in  early  December  the  Commission  adopts  its  proposal  for  the  fishing 
opportunities Regulation and Member States, Regional Advisory Committees and 
stakeholders discuss it; 

•  in mid-December the Regulation is adopted by Council. 

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Articles  5  and  6  of  Regulation  (EC)  2371/2002  of  20  December  2002  on  the  conservation  and 
sustainable  exploitation  of  fisheries  resources  under  the  Common  Fisheries  Policy,  O.J.  L  388, 
31.12.2002, p. 59 

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During 2004 and 2005 the Commission began an early discussion (from the start of 
the year) with Member States and stakeholders on a number of technical issues in the 
fishing  opportunities  Regulation.  In  these  "front-loading"  meetings  matters  such  as 
technical  measures,  arrangements  for  effort  management  and  closed  areas  were 
addressed  in  detail.  This  process  facilitated  decision-making  on  technical  issues  in 
2005, especially concerning the implementation of fishing effort management. 

2.3. 

Stakeholders' views 

The  North  Sea  Regional  Advisory  Committee  has  been  consulted  on  the  topic  of 
altering the annual calendar for decision-making. Their main concern has been that 
additional time should be dedicated to considering the conditions under which TACs 
can  be  taken,  especially  transitional  technical  measures  and  effort  management 
systems. 

The  Advisory  Committee  for  Fisheries  and  Aquaculture  has  said  that  it  is  open  to 
considering a change in the timing of fishing opportunities regulations provided that 
any  change  is  made  progressively.  The  ACFA  was  positive  to  implementing 
medium-term strategies (in particular, including a 15% limit on TAC variations) with 
greater involvement of the stakeholders, and for some stocks scientific advice could 
be  sought  less  often  and  TACs  set  for  a  longer  period  (this  is  already  done  for 
Norway lobster and deep-sea species). Like the North Sea RAC, the ACFA's greatest 
concern  was  to  secure  more  time  for  discussions  about  the  conditions  accessory  to 
taking  TACs,  such  as  technical  measures  and  details  of  effort  management 
implementation. ACFA did not support the break-up of the TAC and quota package 
into  separate  elements  and  thought  an  end-of  year  package  solution  would  remain 
inevitable. 

ACFA was ready to consider an option based on changing the timing of the fishing 
year  to  run  from  (say)  1st  April  instead  of  1st  January,  but  agreed  with  the 
Commission that this would only be possible if other coastal states would agree to an 
altered timing. 

3. 

RECOMMENDATIONS FOR IMPROVING THE SYSTEM 

3.1. 

Changing the fishing year 

TACs are currently decided for a calendar year from 1st January, both in the EU and 
in neighbouring third countries. It might be possible to alter this management period 
to run for twelve months from a different date. This could have some advantages for 
specific stocks where the fishing season does not have natural break at the end of the 
calendar year. However, the seasonalities of the various fisheries are so different that 
while  this  may  palliate  some  timing  problems  in  some  fisheries,  it  could  introduce 
new problems in other fisheries. We may need to see whether in order to have a real 
overall  gain  a  different  fishing  year  would  need  to  be  adopted  for  different  stocks. 
This would entail significant administrative costs. Overall the Commission is of the 
view  that  if  alternative  solutions  would  give  an  equivalent  result  we  should  avoid 
pursuing this option in the short term. 

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3.2. 

Changing the scientific schedule of stock assessments 

Scientific  advice  is  presently  provided  to  the  Commission  by  the  Scientific, 
Technical  and  Economic  Committee  for  Fisheries  on  the  basis  of  assessments  and 
advice  from  the  International  Council  for  the  Exploration  of  the  Sea.  Advice  is 
provided at two different times: 

•  in June for deep sea species, stocks in the Baltic Sea and several stocks of herring 

and sprat; 

•  in October for mackerel, Nephrops, and most demersal flatfish and roundfish. 

The Commission has begun to discuss with ICES and STECF what scope exists for 
providing  advice  for  more  of  the  stocks  in  June  rather  than  October.  It  would  be 
necessary to ensure that advice for stocks that are caught together in mixed fisheries 
is provided at the same time in order to ensure consistency. It is also recognised that 
an earlier provision of advice will in some cases result in a less precise forecast, but 
this  may  be  an  acceptable  consequence.  The  Commission  has  also  asked  whether 
advice can be provided slightly earlier in the year, starting in 2007. 

ICES is undertaking a detailed evaluation of the options for modifying the timing of 
assessments  and  advice  to  accommodate  the  Commission’s  needs.  This  evaluation 
will include such issues as: the implications of any change with respect to the loss of 
precision  for  the  various  stocks  when  advice  is  provided  earlier  for  multi-year 
assessments  and  management;  more  strategic  advisory  products;  protocols  for 
unscheduled  updates  of  assessments  and/or  advice  when  new  information  indicates 
this  is  necessary;  and  the  availability  of  the  scientific  workforce  to  deal  with 
assessment  and  advisory  processes  in  a  more  compressed  time  period.  On  basis  of 
this evaluation the Commission will arrange for agreements with ICES for a revised 
advisory process from 2007. 

Regarding  the  advice  given  in  2006  ICES  will  consider  options  for  an  interim 
process  for  providing  advice,  based  on  the  most  recent  assessments  and  ACFM 
advice,  allowing  refinements  if  new  information  is  deemed  important  enough  to 
substantially  change  the  advice.  In  2006  an  important  limitation  is  that  the 
contributors  of  data  and  expertise  to  the  ICES  work,  the  national  fisheries  research 
institutes,  have  planned  their  use  of  resources  well  in  advance  and  that  earlier 
provision of data or rescheduling of meetings is therefore difficult. 

3.3. 

Third country aspects 

Presently,  management  arrangements  for  stocks  managed  jointly  with  Norway 
(North  Sea  cod,  plaice,  saithe,  herring  and  whiting),  normally  managed  with  other 
coastal  states  (Blue  whiting,  Atlanto-scandian  herring,  mackerel)  and  measures 
adopted in NEAFC (Deep-sea species, mackerel, redfish) are decided in November. 
It  is  traditional  to  develop  a  package  of  measures  covering  management 
arrangements such as TACs, technical  measures,  control measures,  and  transfers in 
order to ensure both biological consistency and political balance. 

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The Commission will begin discussions with other coastal states on moving some of 
these decisions to earlier in the year. Although some of these joint decisions rely on 
the  provision  of  the  most  up-to-date  scientific  information,  others  are  not  so 
dependent and a scope for change may exist. 

3.4. 

Earlier consultation with EU stakeholders on fisheries management decisions 

Management  decisions  can  be  better  prepared  and  consultations  made  more  widely 
than at present. Although the estimate of the abundance of recruiting fish will only be 
available late in the year, some general characteristics of the fisheries will be known 
in  advance,  such  as  the  fishing  mortality  and  the  fishing  effort  in  relation  to 
precautionary  limits,  market  demands  from  the  sector,  and  interactions  with  other 
species in the fishery. The preparation of management decisions could be improved 
through  the  proposal  by  the  Commission  of  "harvest  rules"that  will  determine  the 
decisions  to  be  taken  about  the  TAC.  Such  harvest  rules,  which  have  already  been 
adopted  by  the  Council  in  recovery  plans  and  management  plans  for  individual 
stocks, could include, for example: 

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establishing rules on the inter-annual TAC variation; 

establishing  rules  on  the  reduction  of  fishing  mortality  rate  towards  a 
sustainable level; 

adjusting  fishing  effort  (days-at-sea)  in  line  with  fishing  mortality  rates  (the 
proportion of the fish in the sea that are caught during the year). 

A “harvest rule” management approach could, in principle, be extended to all stocks 
under Community fisheries management. This would have the advantage of allowing 
more  time  for  discussion  of  objectives  and  the  means  to  reach  them.  While  the 
scientific  estimates  of  the  precise  quantities  of  fish  involved  are  still  being  refined 
within ICES and STECF, a discussion on management principles could be organised 
with the concerned parties. 

Ideally,  such  harvest  rules  would  be  adopted  as  part  of  Council  Regulations 
concerning  principal  fisheries  and  fish  stocks,  and  would  be  updated  relatively 
infrequently.  In  the  short  term,  however,  there  is  a  need  for  the  Community  to 
discuss appropriate TAC-setting procedures for those stocks where no agreed long-
term plan exists.  

This could be done as follows:  

As a first step, in April, the Commission could present a policy statement concerning 
its intentions for the setting of TACs in the following year. This would present the 
Commission’s  strategy  and  working  assumptions  for  management,  based  on  the 
underlying  trends  of  the  most  recent  scientific  advice  (i.e.  that  presented  in  the 
previous  year).  It  would  present  the  elements  of  a  generic  approach,  such  as,  for 
example: 

(a) 

a  commitment  to  gradually  develop  stocks  to  the  most  appropriate  levels  to 
ensure their sustainable exploitation while providing high yields ;  

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(b)  TACs and effort levels for the following year to be set in accordance with the 
rules  in  recovery  plans  or  long-term  management  plans,  where  they  exist,  or 
with the  principle that  fishing  mortality should not be increased on any stock 
where mortality exceeds the level that would lead to high long-term yields; 

(c) 

(d) 

stocks  that  are  at  similar  levels  of  exploitation  or  depletion  to  be  treated 
similarly; 

rules  on  inter-annual  TAC  variation,  subject  to  special  circumstances  that 
might require more significant change for particular stocks. 

The Commission would illustrate its approach with practical examples for the most 
important  commercial  fish  stocks  showing  how  it  would  be  translated  into  TAC  or 
effort levels, assuming that the scientific advice for the next year would be the same 
as for the current year. (There would have to be a warning in the text that in some 
cases  the  “illustrations”  could  be  significantly  affected  by  forthcoming  scientific 
advice about, for example, the latest recruitment to the stock). 

For  stocks  already  covered  by  existing  recovery  or  management  plans,  their  TAC 
would be estimated by automatically applying provisions of such long-term plans. 

The  policy  statement  will  not  include  the  Commission’s  negotiating  position  as 
regards the Community’s participation in Regional Fishery Organisations. 

A round of consultation with RACs and Member States could take place on the basis 
of  the  Commission  policy  statement  during  the  summer.  This  would  enhance  and 
strengthen the "front-loading" process, and would be an opportunity for stakeholders 
to  engage  in  a  more  strategic  debate  concerning  fishing  activities.  A  policy  debate 
could  also  take  place  in  the  Council  in  October,  at  which  the  Council  would  be 
invited to comment on the Commission’s proposed strategy, taking into account the 
reaction of the RAC’s.  

3.5. 

Changing the timing of legislative proposals and decisions 

It  is  not  necessary  that  the  Commission's  proposals  concerning  annual  fisheries 
management should be a single package covering all resources.  

Those  stocks  for  which  forecasts  are  strongly  dependent  on  the  latest  scientific 
estimates (and other stocks with which they are caught) will have to continue to be 
treated at the years' end. For other, more long-lived stocks the decision process could 
be  brought  forward.  Where  stocks  are  not  overexploited  and  the  stock  size  is 
sufficiently large that there is a substantial "carry-over" of stock from one year to the 
next, the latest survey adds relatively little information about the next years' catching 
possibilities.  Earlier  proposals  can  be  made  and  earlier  decisions  can  be  taken 
concerning stocks where fishing mortality is lower. 

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The  Commission  therefore  suggests  the  following  two-step  approach  to  annual 
fisheries management decisions: 

Step 1 (June - October) 

(i) 

For fish stocks that are managed by the Community alone and for which ICES 
scientific advice is available  in June, the Commission will  seek the  advice of 
the relevant Regional Advisory Councils concerning the relevant TACs during 
June and July. The Commission will then prepare a proposal for a Regulation 
by  early  September.  The  Council  would  then  be  in  a  position  to  adopt  these 
TACs in October. At present a separate legislative proposal is made for stocks 
in the Baltic Sea and for deep-water species. This approach could be extended 
in  future  to  pelagic  stocks  managed  by  the  Community  alone  and  (subject  to 
reaching earlier agreement with other coastal states) to blue whiting, mackerel 
and shared herring stocks. 

Step 2 (October – December) 

(ii)  For “recruitment-dependent” fisheries, where the stock of fish that is available 
to  be  caught  in  one  year  is  mostly  made  up  of  young  fish  that  are  newly 
recruited to the stock, it will remain unavoidable to continue setting the TAC 
once  the  incoming  year-class  strength  can  be  assessed.  This  will  mean 
postponing  the  presentation  of  the  Commission  proposal  until  the  autumn 
advice of ICES has been finalised (currently in October, with the possibility of 
a slightly earlier date in future). This implies very little change in the timing of 
the  Commission  proposal  (late  November).  Nevertheless,  the  previous 
consultation of stakeholders and the Council on the basis of the Commission’s 
policy statement should mean that consultation with Stakeholders on the recent 
advice  will  be  facilitated.  The  final  Commission  proposal  would  contain  no 
surprises  for  the  parties  concerned.  This  second  step  will  also  include  the 
TACs,  as  well  as  the  provisional  application  of  technical  measures,  resulting 
from  the  annual  meetings  of  Regional  Fishery  Organisations  such  as  NAFO, 
ICCAT, CCAMLR or NEAFC. 

3.6. 

Separating quota regulations from other management instruments 

Stakeholders  and  Member  States  have  suggested  that  the  inclusion  of  rules  on  the 
limitation  of  fishing  effort  as  part  of  the  annual  fisheries  management  package 
complicates  the  negotiation  process,  and  that  such  rules  should  addressed  in  a 
separate regulation. 

The  Commission  agrees  that  the  detailed  rules  for  measuring,  transferring  and 
monitoring  fishing  effort  could  be  the  subject  of  a  self-standing  regulation.  The 
fixing of the fishing effort limits themselves, however, would have to remain part of 
the annual decision-making process. 

Because  the  current  Community  rules  on  fishing  effort  limitation  will  be 
reconsidered as part of the planned review of the cod recovery plan starting later this 
year, the Commission considers that it would be appropriate to wait until 2007 before 
proposing a new and separate Regulation on Community rules for managing fishing 
effort.

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4. 

CONCLUSION: A NEW CALENDAR FOR THE FISHERIES MANAGEMENT DEBATE 

In order to extend opportunities for dialogue and discussion on Community fisheries 
management the following timetable could be followed: 

Date 

April 

Early June 

June-July 

Action 

The  Commission  publishes  its  “policy  statement”  concerning  setting 
fishing opportunities for the following year. A dialogue with the sector is 
opened on policy issues and continues  throughout the year. It includes a 
discussion of harvest rules for TAC and effort levels and other technical 
issues such as effort management. 

ICES  and  STECF  provide  scientific  advice  for  some  stocks  (notably 
Baltic, pelagic and (every second year) deep-sea species). 

The  Commission  consults  the  RAC’s  on  the  application  of  Community 
fisheries policy to the "June advice” stocks. Negotiations take place with 
third countries concerning jointly managed pelagic stocks, if they agree. 

Early September  The  Commission  issues  its  proposal  for  a  Regulation  on  fishing 

opportunities for the "June advice” stocks. 

October 

The Council adopts a Regulation on TACs for the "June advice” stocks. 

ICES and STECF provide scientific advice for the remaining stocks. 

Discussions on fisheries policy options and the latest scientific advice for 
the “October advice” stock continue with stakeholders. 

November 

Negotiations  with  Norway  and  other  coastal  States  concerning  “October 
advice” stocks. 

The Commission takes account of discussions with RAC’s in preparing its 
second fishing opportunities proposal, to be issued in late November. 

December 

The Council adopts a Regulation on fishing opportunities for the “October 
advice” stocks. 

January 

Fishing opportunities Regulations come into force for the calendar year. 

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