Recommendations for the European Commission and the EU Council on the setting of Northeast Atlantic fishing opportunities for 2021

The document argues that the EU failed to meet the 2020 legal deadline to end overfishing in the Northeast Atlantic, noting that 46 percent of Total Allowable Catches (TACs) in December 2019 exceeded scientific advice. It recommends that 2021 TACs be set strictly within the best available scientific advice from ICES, that landing obligation (LO) compliance be factored into catch limits, and that transparency be improved regarding the rationale for TAC proposals.

• The European Commission and fisheries ministers failed to end overfishing in the Northeast Atlantic by the 2020 deadline established in Article 2.2 of the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP). In December 2019, 46 percent of Northeast Atlantic Total Allowable Catches (TACs) were set above scientific advice, and nearly half of the Commission's own TAC proposals also exceeded that advice.
• The document recommends that the Commission and Council set TACs that do not exceed the best available scientific advice from ICES, including both the MSY approach and the data-limited precautionary approach. It further suggests that TACs should not exceed the FMSY point value specified by EU multi-annual plans (MAPs).
• To address poor compliance with the landing obligation (LO), the document recommends setting TACs lower than catch advice to prevent fishing mortality from exceeding sustainable levels. It suggests that quota adjustments for previous discards should only be available to vessels demonstrating full LO compliance.
• The document calls for increased transparency in the TAC process, recommending that the Commission make public the rationale, data, and studies used when proposals exceed scientific advice, as well as any 'non-papers' issued after the official proposal.
• For stocks with zero catch advice, the document recommends that 'bycatch TACs' only be granted if member states implement a monitored and enforced bycatch reduction or rebuilding plan using remote electronic monitoring (REM).

APA

ClientEarth (2020). Recommendations for the European Commission and the EU Council on the setting of Northeast Atlantic fishing opportunities for 2021. https://www.clientearth.org/media/ultb1b2y/joint-ngo-recommendations-to-the-eu-on-fishing-opportunities-for-2021.pdf

Chicago

ClientEarth. Recommendations for the European Commission and the EU Council on the setting of Northeast Atlantic fishing opportunities for 2021. 2020. https://www.clientearth.org/media/ultb1b2y/joint-ngo-recommendations-to-the-eu-on-fishing-opportunities-for-2021.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |author=ClientEarth |title=Recommendations for the European Commission and the EU Council on the setting of Northeast Atlantic fishing opportunities for 2021 |date=1 July 2020 |url=https://www.clientearth.org/media/ultb1b2y/joint-ngo-recommendations-to-the-eu-on-fishing-opportunities-for-2021.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{clientearth2020recommendations, author = {{ClientEarth}}, title = {{Recommendations for the European Commission and the EU Council on the setting of Northeast Atlantic fishing opportunities for 2021}}, publisher = {ClientEarth}, year = {2020}, month = jul, url = {https://www.clientearth.org/media/ultb1b2y/joint-ngo-recommendations-to-the-eu-on-fishing-opportunities-for-2021.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }