Advice and Recommendations

Following a request to the Commission in 2019 for the inclusion of a pelagic chapter in STECF’s Annual Economic report (AER), the Pelagic AC sought assistance from the Commission once more, in requesting STECF to include a chapter on pelagic fisheries in its AERs on a continuous basis moving forward. It is the PelAC’s view that such a chapter would present the sector proportionally relative to the demersal fleet and highlight its importance in Europe in terms of economic performance. It would also capture the impact of reductions in catch advice. The Pelagic AC appreciates the Commission’s intent to discuss the future continuous inclusion of such a chapter during the planning of the 2022 AER with STECF.

The Pelagic AC has submitted a rebuilding plan for Western horse mackerel to the Commission on 28 July 2020, requesting its evaluation by ICES. The Pelagic AC was pleased that ICES found this plan precautionary, through its evaluation published in April 2021. The PelAC requested the Commission to pursue the general acceptance of the rebuilding plan for this stock in its negotiations with the United Kingdom, in order to jointly request that ICES use the rebuilding plan as a basis for the top line of the advice (rather than in a catch options table) for the TAC advice for Western horse mackerel in 2022, and onwards.

The PelAC’s recommendation to the Commission consultation on the review of the Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD) was submitted in a letter-format, and conveyed the following main conclusions: The PelAC shares the Commission’s aspirations for healthy marine ecosystems, and considers that the efforts and advice generated through the initiative of its Ecosystem Focus Group can be considered as contributions to the objectives set out by the MSFD, such as environmental aspects. The PelAC also highlighted the difficulty for stakeholders that are active in the specific field of pelagic fisheries management, to monitor developments and provide detailed input to such broad policy files such as the MSFD which encompasses diverse fields of knowledge and expertise. In part, this is a consequence of a lack of resources, but also because there has been limited active communication. The PelAC recommended to reflect on what can be done to enhance the engagement of stakeholders in the field of (pelagic) fisheries to the MSFD, highlighting that this recommendation goes both ways: applying to the Commission and the Member States, but also to the PelAC itself.

The Pelagic Advisory Council would like to formally inquire about the status of the review of the final report for the EASME-funded project ‘Herring in Divisions 6.a, 7.b and 7.c: Scientific Assessment of the Identity of the Southern and Northern Stocks through Genetic and Morphometric Analysis‘, which concluded in December 2020.It is imperative that this review is conducted as soon as possible so that the results of the project can be incorporated into the revised stock assessments that are being developed for the forthcoming benchmark assessments.

Update 1: Following the finalization in December 2020 of the EASME-funded genetics project ‘Herring in Divisions 6.a, 7.b and 7.c: Scientific Assessment of the Identity of the Southern and Northern Stocks through Genetic and Morphometric Analysis’, the Pelagic AC formally requested the Commission to seek a peer-review of the final report by ICES, which was one of the key recommendations of the final project. A peer-review would ensure that the results of the project can be incorporated into the revised stock assessments that are being developed for the forthcoming benchmark assessments, expected late 2021 and early 2022.

Update 2: PelAC letter to Commission sent on 4 May: The Commission has been asked if this formal review has been requested from ICES. If it has not, PelAC request that this recommendation be expedited as a matter of urgency, to enable timely completion before the first benchmark meeting of 6a, 7bc herring expected in November 2021.

The issue of bycatch of sensitive species in pelagic gears was recently selected as a core theme to work on within the PelAC Ecosystem Focus Group (EFG). It is recognized within the EFG that further development of a sound knowledge base as regards bycatch data, impacts on sensitive species and effective measures, would progress the work of the EFG in a meaningful way. The CIBBRiNA project is therefore considered timely and relevant. The Pelagic AC therefore submitted a letter of support to the CIBBRiNA project as added weight for the funding application process at LIFE, and accepted to become part of the project’s stakeholder advisory board if the funds are honored.

In May 2022, the LIFE office informed the project coordinator that unfortunately – although the project has in principle received a favourable evaluation — it is currently not high enough in the ranking to be funded (given the budget limit of the call). The CIBBRiNA project then decided to incorporate the EC evaluation points in a revised proposal of CIBBRiNA and resubmit this for the next LIFE round on 4 October 2022.

The joint letter issued by LDAC, Europêche, and ETF on the social dimension to fisheries management and policy, highlights a number of important legal instruments for maritime safety and labour in EU fisheries and underscores the pressing need to ensure all necessary elements are appropriately and rapidly transposed into relevant community and national law, for the benefit of seafarers and their communities. Due to the importance of progress against these objectives, the Pelagic AC felt compelled to voice its support for the LDAC, Europêche and ETF’s communication on the subject.

The PelAC has sent a letter to the NSAC requesting to deal with pelagic stocks in several areas currently sitting under the NSAC remit: ICES sub areas IV and IIIa (Sprat, Norway pout, Greater silver smelt), ICES divisions IVa–c, 6a and Subdivisions 20-22 (Sandeel). The NSAC is currently not issuing advice for these stocks. The PelAC therefore asked if the Pelagic AC could cover the advice for these stocks informally while awaiting the next reform of the CFP, where Annex III can be amended formally to reflect this change.

The NSAC replied that it would welcome the discussion for the creating of a joint-Focus Group on these stocks, that will remain under the competency of the NSAC.

The PelAC has sent a letter to the NWWAC requesting to deal with pelagic stocks in several areas currently sitting under the NWWAC remit: ICES subarea VI and areas VIIa-k (sprat), Union waters of ICES areas VI and VII (Greater silver smelt). The NWWAC is currently not issuing advice for these stocks. The PelAC therefore asked if the Pelagic AC could cover the advice for these stocks informally while awaiting the next reform of the CFP, where Annex III can be amended formally to reflect this change.

In its reply, the NWWAC proposed a virtual meeting between the Chairs and Secretariats of both ACs to discuss the development of a ‘gentlemen’s agreement’ for creating joint-advice, while still respecting each others’ competencies.

The Pelagic AC provides recommendations on TACs in 2022 for stocks under its remit.

For two years running, ICES has advised a zero TAC for the western Baltic herring stock in sub-divisions 20-24. It has been the subject of discussion in our Advisory Councils, both of which advise on this stock.  ICES recently held a Working Group on rebuilding plans (WKREBUILD) from 24th – 28th February 2020. Representatives from both of the Advisory Councils took part. However, the workshop was inconclusive on what kind of approach to take towards rebuilding plans, and it is too early to conclude what the outcome of the work will be. One particular issue highlighted was the need to clarify whether the purpose of rebuilding plans is to focus on the conservation of stocks or on the continuation of a particular fishery.

Both ACs consider oil/gas exploration an important sector in European offshore areas contributing to underwater noise. However, the impacts of these activities on fish, shellfish, spawning grounds and larval development, both on the long and short term, remain poorly understood by the scientific community. Both ACs are of firm belief that independent scientific research on seismic impacts is necessary and urgent. We would therefore highly encourage the development of scientific expertise by ICES in this research field, in the form of a non-recurrent request.