Taking stock 2022 - are TACs set to achieve MSY?

The report finds that while there is a positive trend in aligning TACs with scientific advice, the 2020 deadline to end overfishing was missed. For 2022, 33% of analyzed TACs still exceeded scientific advice. Progress is significantly slower for stocks subject to precautionary advice compared to those with Maximum Sustainable Yield (MSY) assessments. The report also highlights a lack of transparency in the TAC-setting process and concerns over the implementation of the landing obligation.

• The 2020 deadline to end overfishing was missed, although the percentage of TACs set above scientific advice has decreased from 48% in 2020 to 44% in 2021 and 33% in 2022.
• There is a significant disparity in how scientific advice is followed based on the assessment method: 83% of 2022 TACs for MSY-assessed stocks followed scientific advice, while only 42% of those with precautionary advice did so.
• TACs for stocks primarily taken as bycatch are exceeded more frequently and by larger average amounts than those for target stocks, reflecting a lower ambition for bycatch recovery.
• For the first time in 2022, the percentage of TAC tonnage that undershot scientific advice was larger than the percentage that overshot it (-7% undershoot versus +4% overshoot).
• The UK has demonstrated an ecosystem-based approach by setting TACs for forage fish, such as sandeel, below single stock advice to protect predator-prey interactions.
• The landing obligation's failure to be properly implemented, combined with catch-based TACs and unreported discards, creates a high risk of continued overfishing.
• The TAC-setting process suffers from a systemic lack of transparency, with the Council of the EU failing to implement European Ombudsman recommendations to publish documents promptly.
• The European Commission's reporting on progress towards MSY has been criticized as potentially misleading, often using volume-based statistics that paint an overly positive picture by ignoring smaller, depleted stocks.
• Eleven stocks remain in a dire state, being below the limit reference point for biomass (Blim) as of 2023, including various cod and whiting stocks in the Irish Sea, Celtic Sea, and West of Scotland.

APA

ClientEarth (2022). Taking stock 2022 - are TACs set to achieve MSY? https://www.clientearth.org/media/rine44zc/taking-stock-2022-are-tacs-set-to-achieve-msy.pdf

Chicago

ClientEarth. Taking stock 2022 - are TACs set to achieve MSY? 2022. https://www.clientearth.org/media/rine44zc/taking-stock-2022-are-tacs-set-to-achieve-msy.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=ClientEarth |title=Taking stock 2022 - are TACs set to achieve MSY? |date=October 2022 |url=https://www.clientearth.org/media/rine44zc/taking-stock-2022-are-tacs-set-to-achieve-msy.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{clientearth2022taking, author = {{ClientEarth}}, title = {{Taking stock 2022 - are TACs set to achieve MSY?}}, institution = {ClientEarth}, year = {2022}, month = oct, url = {https://www.clientearth.org/media/rine44zc/taking-stock-2022-are-tacs-set-to-achieve-msy.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }