COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION concerning a consultation on Fishing Opportunities   COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION concerning a consultation on Fishing Opportunities
Date: 2011-05-25
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: authorised catch, common fisheries policy, fishing area, over-exploitation of resources

EUROPEAN COMMISSION 

Brussels, 25.5.2011 
COM(2011) 298 final 

COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION 

concerning a consultation on Fishing Opportunities  

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1. 

INTRODUCTION 

This  consultation  paper  explains  the  progress  achieved  in  the  Common  Fisheries 
Policy over the last years and sets out a way forward for the next years. The purpose 
is to consult on the ways in which total allowable catches (TACs) should be fixed for 
fisheries  in  European  waters  and  for  European  fishers.  European  citizens,  Member 
States,  Regional  Advisory  Councils  (RACs)  and  the  Advisory  Committee  for 
Fisheries and Aquaculture (ACFA) are invited to comment.  

The  aim  of  setting  levels  of  Total  Allowable  Catches  (TACs)  and  quotas  and  the 
fishing  effort  levels  for  European  fisheries  for  2012  should  be  to  phase  out 
overfishing.  Overfishing  does  not  necessarily  mean  that  a  stock  is  at  risk  of 
extinction  or  collapse  -  it  simply  means  that  as  much  fish  or  even  more  could  be 
caught with less fishing activity. This means taking each year a proportion of the fish 
in the sea that is the right size to let fish grow and reproduce at their most productive 
level. Under these conditions, the long-term catches from fish stocks will be at their 
maximum  sustainable  level  (MSY).  Fishing  too  hard  means  the  fish  will  be  caught 
too soon and too small and using too much fuel. The European Commission1 and the 
Member  States  of  the  Union  have  committed  themselves  to  reach  the  objective  of 
MSY fishing, by 2015.  

Fish stocks in European waters are improving. The proportion of overfished stocks in 
the  Atlantic  and  nearby  seas  fell  from  32  out  of  34  stocks  in  2004  to 22  out  of  35 
stocks in 2010, i.e. from 94% to 63%. (see Annex I for details). This progress is good 
news  as  it  demonstrates  that  determined  action  makes  a  difference.  Now  stocks  of 
sole in the Skagerrak, Kattegat, and Baltic Sea, in the western Channel, in the Celtic 
Sea;  North  Sea  haddock,  Rockall  haddock,  herring  in  the  North  Sea,  the  west  of 
Scotland and the Celtic Sea, saithe in the North Sea and west of Scotland, megrims 
off  Spain  and  Portugal  and  North  Sea  Nephrops  are  known  not  to  be  overfished. 
However, the state of deep-sea resources is a cause for concern. 

In  the  Mediterranean  Sea  82%  of  known  stocks  are  overfished.  The  percentage  of 
overfished stocks is still too high and there can be no room for complacency: more 
efforts are needed to phase out overfishing. 

Setting  TACs  and  quotas  remains  an  essential  conservation  tool.  Recent  analysis 
indicates that there is no evidence that significant reductions in the overcapacity of 
the EU fleet have been made2. 

The  move  to  MSY  should  bring  significant  benefits,  and  will  mean  a  change  from 
fishing intensively on scarce resources to fishing lightly on larger stocks. The same 

1 

2 

Implementing sustainability in EU fisheries through maximum sustainable yield. Communication from 
the Commission to the Council and the European Parliament. COM (2006) 360 final.  
Report on Member States' efforts during 2009 to achieve a sustainable balance between fishing capacity 
and  fishing  opportunities.  Communication  from  the  Commission  to  the  European  Parliament,  the 
Council,  the  European  Economic  and  Social  Committee  and  the  Committee  of  the  Regions. 
COM(2011) 

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or  larger  quantities  should  be  caught,  but  with  lower  impact  on  the  environment. 
Impacts  of  fishing  on  sea  bottoms  will  be  less,  by-catches  of  vulnerable  organisms 
including porpoises, dolphins and other marine mammals will decrease, because the 
overall intensity of fishing will be less. Fuel costs will decrease significantly because 
it takes less fishing time to catch a tonne of fish from an abundant stock than from a 
scarce  one.  This  will  reduce  carbon  emissions  as  well  as  the  fuel  expenditure  of 
fishing vessels. 

Another  important  benefit  is  that  pressures  to  discard  will  decrease.  Heavily-fished 
stocks are mostly made up of smaller and less valuable fish which are thrown back 
either  because  of  their  low  value  on  the  markets  or  because  they  are  legally 
undersized.  Phasing  out  overfishing  will  be  an  important  contributor  to  reducing 
discards. Further specific regulation concerning discards is foreseen in the context of 
the reform of the Common Fisheries Policy. 

Phasing out overfishing will improve the state of resources and lower the impact on 
the  environment.  It  will  also  improve  the  economic  profitability  of  the  catching 
sector.  Profitability  projections  for  certain  fleet  segments  under  long  term 
management  plans  show  encouraging  signs  of  improvement  in  their  economic 
performance. 

2. 

STATE OF RESOURCES 

In 2010 the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES) developed a 
new form of advice concerning TAC levels which will lead to MSY fishing by 2015. 
The Commission welcomes this new advice and intends to base its TAC proposals on 
it. 

Current  knowledge  on  the  state  of  fish  stocks  is  summarised  in  Annex  Ia  and 
described briefly below3.  

MSY TACs have been set for Atlanto-Scandian herring, blue whiting and North Sea 
herring,  which  are  well-managed  now.  However,  the  Union  has  been  unable  to 
secure the agreement of Iceland and the Faroe Islands to join in the management of 
mackerel.  The  total  of  the  TACs  fixed  by  the  EU,  Norway,  Faroe  Islands,  Iceland 
and  Russia  in  2010  were  63%  above  the  scientific  advice.  Although  mackerel  are 
now  abundant,  the  rate  of  fishing  is  well  outside  sustainable  limits  and  a  stock 
decline is likely in future years if international management is not agreed. 

In  the  North  Sea,  Skagerrak  and  Kattegat  all  known  stocks  except  plaice,  haddock 
and herring are overfished with respect to MSY. TACs exceeded scientific advice by 
11% in 2011 compared with 17% in 2010 and 37% in 2009. 

Many stocks in the west of Scotland, Irish Sea and Celtic Sea are still overfished and 
stock  sizes  are  small.  ICES  has  reported  many  problems  with  recording  of  catches 
and other data.. Eight stocks are so depleted that, according to scientific advice,they 

3 
A table of European quotas and relevant "traffic lights" can be read at  
http://ec.europa.eu/fisheries/documentation/publications/poster_tac2011_en.pdf. 
A full analysis of the state of fish stocks can be found at www.ices.dk and https://stecf.jrc.ec.europa.eu 

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should  not  be  caught.  Of  14  stocks  where  MSY  assessments  could  be  made,  eight 
stocks were found to be overfished. TACs exceeded advice by 42% in 2011. Celtic 
Sea  herring  and  haddock  are  doing  well,  but  discards  of  haddock  and  whiting  will 
increase if intensive fishing with 80mm nets for Nephrops continues without the use 
of fishing gear that will let small fish escape. The fishing industry and the Member 
States concerned should develop and introduce more selective fishing gear.  

Few  assessments  are  available  for  the  stocks  in  the  Bay  of  Biscay  and  Iberian-
Atlantic Seas. Southern hake are abundant due to good recruitment of juveniles, but 
ICES  reports  that  large  over-quota  catches  were  again  taken  in  2010,  so  the  long-
term  sustainability  of  this  stock  is  at  risk.  Nephrops  in  the  Cantabrian  Sea  are  still 
subject to an advice to stop fishing. 

While  no  precise  assessments  are  available,  the  state  of  many  deep-stocks  cause 
concern. Stocks of orange roughy, certain deep-sea sharks, and red sea bream in the 
Bay of Biscay and roundnose grenadier are depleted. Advice for most stocks is that 
fisheries should either be reduced or not be allowed to expand unless they are known 
to  be  sustainable.  For  faster-growing  species  such  as  tusk,  ling,  blue  ling,  red 
seabream  and  black  scabbard,  a  development  of  fisheries  towards  long-term 
sustainable levels might be possible in the future. For 2011, no separate regulation on 
fishing opportunities will be proposed as the regulation adopted in 2010 covers both 
2011 and 2012 . 

In the Baltic Sea, 4 out of 6 known stocks are overfished. Cod in the Eastern Baltic 
and herring in the Bothnian Sea are well-managed. 

In  the  Mediterranean,  most  (82%)  of  the  resources  are  overfished  and  some  are 
depleted to low levels (Annex Ib). 

In  the  Black  Sea,  the  situation  has  not  changed  significantly.  Sprat  is  in  a  good 
condition based on recent strong recruitments and is fished sustainably while turbot 
is overfished.  

3. 

ECONOMIC ANALYSIS 

It  is  not  yet  possible  to  compile  a  full  overview  that  includes  all  sectors  of  the  EU 
fleet,  due  to  incomplete  datasets  from  some  Member  States.  Greece  and  Spain  did 
not deliver any 2008 economic data. Belgium, Bulgaria, Denmark, Greece, Ireland, 
Latvia,  Portugal,  Romania,  Slovenia  and  Spain  delivered  incomplete  data  for  the 
period  2002-2008.  These data deficiencies  seriously compromise the evaluations of 
the overall economic performance of the EU fishing fleet.  

Annual Economic Report 2008 data show that the economic profitability of the EU 
catching sector is weak and has been slowly deteriorating over the last few years. 

Profit  before  taxes  was  around  6%,  including  direct  subsidies  (around  3.8% 
excluding subsidies). The economic crisis appears to have had some negative impact 
on  first  sale  prices  of  fish  for  many  species  as  current  prices  are  still  about  10% 
below 2007 prices.  

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The  two  most  important  cost  components  are  fuel  (23%  of  total  costs  on  average) 
and  wages  (around  28%).  Fuel  consumption  varies  widely,  with  trawlers  –  in 
particular  beam  trawlers  –  using  most.  High  fuel  prices  mean  that,  even  if  many 
fleets adapted their fishing behaviour to save fuel, the impact of fuel prices on costs 
is increasing. In many fleet segments, increasing fuel costs are leading to lower crew 
shares and lower wages.  

Around  10%  to  20%  of  fleet  segments  generate  negative  cash  flow,  meaning  that 
income was not enough to cover short-term operational costs. When capital costs are 
included,  this  indicates  that  30%  to  40%  of  the  fleet  segments  have  negative  long-
term profitability. 

Beam  trawlers  are  making  significant  losses.  Demersal  trawlers  and  seines  do 
slightly better, moving between positive and negative profit levels depending on first 
sale  prices  of  fish  and  fuel  costs.  Dredge  segments  performed  better  than  other 
mobile gear segments. All the static gear segments are profitable. 

Profitability  projections  for  certain  fleet  segments  under  long  term  management 
plans are slightly better. 

The  processing  sector  is  generally  profitable.  Many  coastal  areas,  traditionally 
dependent on local landings, are specialising now in the processing of imported fish. 
Imports account now for more than 65% of total EU consumption of seafood. 

4. 

POLICY DIRECTIONS  

4.1. 

Absence of scientific advice 

Scientific  advice  about  overfishing  is  missing  for  about  two-thirds  of  the  TACs.  In 
most cases this is because of missing information on catches, incomplete surveys or 
poor sampling, though there are cases where the underlying biological issues present 
difficult scientific challenges. Providing scientific data on fisheries is a responsibility 
of Member States, and these responsibilities in a number of cases are not met fully. 

In other areas of human activity (as well as in fisheries in other parts of the world) 
there  is  an  obligation  to  obtain  adequate  assessments  of  the  intended  impact  of  an 
activity  before  it  can  start.  Recent  practice  in  fisheries  has  fallen  well  short  of  this 
standard. This should be redressed. If stocks are fished in ignorance about their status 
with respect to overfishing, then overfishing will never be phased out.  

While  so  little  is  known  about  many  stocks4,  more  cautious  TACs  should  be  set 
where uncertainty is greater.  

Immediate redress would cause serious disruption if fishing were to be prohibited on 
all stocks whose status is currently unknown. Instead, four courses of action should 
be proposed. 

4 

COM (2000) 1 final 

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- When scientific advice on overfishing is unavailable, a reduction of 25% in 
the  TAC  and/or  in  the  fishing  effort  levels  should  be  proposed,  unless  scientific 
advice  indicates  that  a  bigger  reduction  is  necessary  because  of  short-term  risks  to 
the stock.  

-  Member  States  should  devote  sufficient  resources  and  urgently  deliver  the 

necessary information to allow the state of the stocks to be estimated.  

-  Scientific  agencies  will  be  tasked  with  supporting  the  resolution  of  these 
problems as a matter of urgency, bearing in mind that the knowledge base must be 
provided by the Member States. 

-  Indicators  from  commercial  fisheries  and  from  the  scientific  surveys  should  be 
developed  to  provide  some  robust  rules  to  guide  fisheries  towards  sustainable 
exploitation of resources even in data-poor situations. 

4.2. 

Fishing effort 

Fishing effort (limits on time at sea for fishing vessels) has been managed alongside 
TACs  to  reduce  discards  and  reduce  the  opportunity  for  illegal  catches.  Effort 
management  is  an  important  conservation  measure  used  in  several  long-term 
management plans, e.g. for cod in the North Sea and Baltic Sea, the North Sea plaice 
and sole, the western Channel sole and the southern hake and Norway lobster stocks 
(Annex II). 

Total fishing effort, as measured in Annex II, concerning cod stocks west of Scotland 
and the North Sea has not decreased, and the effort deployed using gillnets (>60mm 
mesh  size)  and  bottom  longlines  in  the  Iberian-Atlantic  area  has  increased.  This 
situation  needs  to  change  as  the  management  plans  for  both  cod  and  hake  in  these 
areas  foresee  that  fishing  effort  and  fishing  mortality  should  decrease  and  not 
increase.  Measures  will  be  proposed  to  ensure  that  the  effort  deployed  in  bottom 
longline and static net fisheries for southern hake will decrease. 

Effort management arrangements are complicated and need careful analysis. To that 
end,  the  Commission  will  ask  interested  parties  to  raise  any  difficulties  with  effort 
management  systems  by  1  September  so  that  proper  attention  can  be  given  to  the 
subject before the end-year decisions are taken. 

If  problems  concerning  effort  management  systems  are  raised  after  that  date,  the 
Commission  will  defer  a  any  proposal  on  changing  the  system  until  a  thorough 
assessment can be carried out in the following year. Meanwhile, the effort levels will 
have to be adapted as required by the plans. 

5. 

MANAGEMENT BY MULTI-ANNUAL PLANS 

Several  of  the  current  management  plans  were  developed  to  recover  stocks  from 
depleted  conditions  rather  than  with  the  objective  of  managing  them  towards  good 
stock  conditions.  Therefore,  plans  should  be  revised  to  phase  out  overfishing  by 
2015.  

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Currently  the  following  plans  are  under  review:  Western  channel  sole,  Cod  stocks, 
Sole  and  plaice  stocks  in  the  North  Sea,  haddock,  herring,  saithe  in  the  North  Sea, 
Southern hake and nephrops, Bay of Biscay sole. 

The  Commission  will  work  on  a  new  proposal  for  Northern  hake  if  the  science  is 
consolidated,  and  may  take  a  multi-species  approach,  as  hake  is  taken  in  a  mixed 
fishery including anglerfish. 

Some plans appear to be already consistent with MSY targets: 

•  North Sea haddock (Accepted in bilateral consultations with Norway) 

•  West of Scotland herring 

•  North Sea herring 

•  Atlanto-Scandian herring (Accepted by the relevant Coastal States) 

•  Blue whiting (Accepted by the relevant Coastal States) 

Plans  concerning  anchovy  in  the  Bay  of  Biscay  and  horse  mackerel  are  still  under 
discussion  in  Parliament  and  in  Council.  Further  plans  concerning  for  example 
pelagic stocks in the Baltic Sea are under development. 

In  the  Mediterranean,  effort  will  continue  on  developing  international  long-term 
plans  for  relevant  fisheries.  According  to  the  Mediterranean  Regulation5,  EU 
Member  States  should  set  up  multiannual  plans  at  a  national  level.  Progress  has 
started on this and will continue. 

6. 

WORKING METHOD FOR PROPOSING TACS 

Where long-term plans exist governing the TACs or effort levels exist, these have to 
be followed. This is the best approach to sustainability in the long-term. Also, where 
TACs  and  other  measures  have  been  agreed  with  third  countries,  these  have  to  be 
implemented. 

TACs should be set according to scientific advice based on comprehensive data and 
quantitative  analysis  and  forecasts  according  to  the  "MSY  framework".  When  such 
advice is available it should be directly used to fix levels of quotas or fishing effort, 
though  a  gradual  implementation  of  this  framework  by  2015  could  be  accepted 
where this is compatible with the advice. 

Where  there  is  no  scientific  advice,  or  where  the  data  available  are  inadequate  to 
calculate the size of the stock and the appropriate catch, there is a need to be more 
careful.  As  set  out  in  section  4.1,  a  25%  reduction  in  TAC  should  be  applied  and 
Member States should take urgent steps to identify the appropriate fishing rate. 

5 

Council Regulation (EC) No 1967/2006 

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7. 

SCHEDULE OF PROPOSALS 

Timing  of  the  individual  proposals  differs  among  the  regions.  TAC  decisions  for 
most  EU  stocks  have  in  recent  years  been  taken  in  December  on  the  basis  of 
proposals  published  in  mid  to  late  October.  For  the  Atlantic,  North  Sea  and  other 
areas an earlier proposal and an earlier decision would be possible if these decisions 
were  taken  separately  from  the  transcription  of  the  fishing  possibilities  accepted  in 
consultations with Norway and other third countries.  

If  such  a  new  structure  of  proposals  is  adopted,  the  timetable  of  work  could  be  as 
follows: 

Fishing 
Opportunities 
Regulation 

Advice 
Available 

Commission 
Proposal 

Possible adoption 
by Council 

Black Sea 

October 

November 

December  

Baltic Sea 

May 

early September 

October  

June(*) 

September 

November 

October(*)

November 

December 

Exclusive EU 
stocks in 
Atlantic, North 
Sea and other 
areas 

Shared stocks in 
Atlantic, North 
Sea, and 
internationally-
managed stocks 
in the Antarctic 
and other areas 

 (*)  Initial  ICES  advice  for  many  stocks  in  June,  further  elements  added  in  July. 
Advice for pelagic and widely-distributed species provided in October 

8. 

CONCLUSION 

The  Commission  solicits  the  views  of  European  citizens,  European  Parliament,  the 
Member  States  represented  at  Council,  the  RACs,  the  ACFA  and  concerning  the 
approach  set  out  herein  to  manage  for  sustainability  according  to  the  Common 
Fisheries Policy's objectives.  

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ANNEX Ia –North-East Atlantic and adjacent waters 

Table 1. Scientific advice 
about the state of the stock 

Outside safe biological limits 
Inside safe biological limits 
The state of the stock is 
unknown due to poor data 

Table 2. Scientific advice 
about overfishing 

The rate of fishing on the stock 
is known compared to maximum 
sustainable yield rate6 

The stock is overfished 
The stock is fished at the 
maximum sustainable yield rate 

Number of fish stocks 

2003  2004  2005 2006 2007 2008  2009  2010
22 
15 

27 
12 

28 
13 

26 
12 

30 
12 

26 
11 

29 
10 

26 
14 

2011 Average
19 
15 

26 
13 

48 

53 

53 

57 

58 

55 

57 

60 

61 

56 

2003  2004  2005 2006

2007  2008  2009  2010 2011 Average

34 

23 

32 

21 

32 

30 

33 

35 

39 

35 

29 

30 

28 

22 

2 

2 

2 

4 

5 

11 

13 

33 

27 

6 

Table 3. "Emergency" 
scientific advice 

Number of fish stocks 

Scientifc advice to stop fishing 

24 

13 

12 

14 

20 

18 

17 

14 

11 

16 

2003  2004  2005 2006

2007  2008  2009  2010 2011 Average

Table 4. Difference between 
TACs and sustainable catches 

Excess of TAC over sustainable 
catch7 (%) 

Table 5. Summary of the 
scientific advice about fishing 
opportunities 

Stocks where stock size and 
fishing mortality can be forecast 

Stocks where a scientific advice 
concerning fishing opportunities 
is available 

Number of fish stocks 

2003  2004  2005 2006

2007  2008  2009  2010 2011 Average

46% 49% 59% 47% 45% 51%  48%  34% 23%

47% 

Number of fish stocks 

2003

2004 2005 2006

2007 2008  2009  2010 2011 Average

40

34

40

31

29

30 

34 

36

36

34 

59

52

54

65

61

62 

63 

55

55

58 

6 

7 

The maximum sustainable yield rate of fishing (Fmsy) is the intensity of fishing activity that will produce 
the highest yield from the stock in the long term, and without depleting the stocks' productive capacity 
in the short term. 
Sustainable  catch  means  the  catch  advised  by  ICES  and  STECF  according  to  the  precautionary 
approach, including implementation of a long-term plan where this is precautionary. 

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Stocks where no scientific 
advice is available 

31

40

39

29

35

34 

33 

42

40

36 

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ANNEX Ib –Mediterranean and Black Seas 

1 - Scientific advice about the state of the stock size (SSB) in the 
Mediterranean and Black Sea  

no. 

% 

Stocks classified according to the above criteria (reference point agreed) 
Other stocks not included due to poor data (reference point not yet agreed) 
Stocks taken into account (out of 19 species) 

1 
110 
111 

0,9  

99,1
100  

Classified stocks: 
Reduced reproductive capacity 
Full reproductive capacity 

Total stocks 

1 
0 
1 

100,0
0,0
100  

2 - Scientific advice about overfishing for the Mediterranean and Black 
Sea stocks 

no. 

% 

Stocks classified according to criteria (reference point agreed) 
Other stocks not included due to poor data (reference point not yet agreed) 

Stocks taken into account (out of 19 species) 
Classified stocks: 
The stock is overfished (above Fmsy or proxy) 
The stock is fished at or below the Fmsy or its proxy 

Total stocks

61 
50 

111 

50 
11 
61 

55,0  
45,0

100  

82,0
18,0
100  

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ANNEX II –Fishing Effort  
regulated under multi-annual plans, as reported by Member States to STECF 

(information provided by the Joint Research Centre) 

12000000

10000000

8000000

6000000

4000000

2000000

s
y
a
d
*
W
k

0
2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

Figure 1. Regulated fishing effort in the Western Baltic Sea  

Year

18000000

16000000

14000000

12000000

10000000

8000000

6000000

4000000

2000000

s
y
a
d
*
W
k

0
2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

Year

Figure 2. Regulated fishing effort in the Central Baltic Sea  

Demersal seines ≥ 90mm

Gillnets ≥ 90mm

Demersal trawls ≥ 90mm

Total

Gillnets ≥ 90mm

Bottom longlines

Demersal trawls ≥ 90mm

Pelagic trawls ≥ 90mm

Total

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7000000

6000000

5000000

4000000

3000000

2000000

1000000

s
y
a
d
*
W
k

Demersal trawls ≥ 100mm

Demersal trawls ≥ 70mm <100 mm

Demersal trawls ≥ 16mm <32 mm

Total

0
2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

Figure 3. Regulated fishing effort in Kattegat  

Year

160000000

140000000

120000000

100000000

80000000

60000000

40000000

20000000

s
y
a
d
*
W
k

Beam trawls  ≥ 120mm

Beam trawls  ≥ 80mm <120 mm

Demersal trawls ≥ 100mm

Demersal trawls ≥ 70mm <100
mm

Gill nets

Total

0
2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

Figure 4. Regulated fishing effort in North Sea, Skagerrak and Eastern Channel. 

Year

EN 

   EN 

 
 
12000000

10000000

8000000

6000000

4000000

2000000

s
y
a
d
*
W
k

Beam trawls  ≥ 80mm <120 mm

Demersal trawls ≥ 100mm

Demersal trawls ≥ 70mm <100 mm

Total

0
2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

Figure 5. Regulated fishing effort in the Irish Sea. 

Year

25000000

20000000

15000000

10000000

5000000

s
y
a
d
*
W
k

Demersal trawls ≥ 100mm

Demersal trawls ≥ 70mm <100
mm

Gill nets

Bottom longlines

Total

0
2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

Figure 6. Regulated fishing effort in the West of Scotland. 

Year

EN 

   EN 

 
 
6000000

5000000

4000000

3000000

2000000

1000000

s
y
a
d
*
W
k

0
2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

Year

Figure 7. Regulated fishing effort in the Western Channel. 

40000000

35000000

30000000

25000000

20000000

15000000

10000000

5000000

s
y
a
d
*
W
k

Beam trawls  ≥ 80mm 

Static nets <220 mm

Total

Demersal trawls ≥ 32mm

Gillnets ≥ 60 mm

Bottom longlines

Total

0
2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

Year

Figure 8. Regulated fishing effort in the Iberian-Atlantic waters.  
Note: The different trend compared to last year is mainly due to improved data from Spain.  

EN 

   EN