Controlling Illegal Fishing in Europe

Controlling Illegal Fishing in Europe

Fishing trawlers transship their catch to a reefer off the cost of Guinea © Environmental Justice Foundation (EJF)

Oceans 5 is supporting four organizations seeking to combat illegal fishing and improve transparency in the fisheries sector.

Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) fishing has a devastating impact on marine environments, livelihoods, food security and legal fishers. It is often facilitated by weak monitoring, corruption and a lack of transparency in the seafood supply chain.

As the EU is the world’s most valuable seafood market, it is in its interest to act on IUU fishing which threatens marine biodiversity, food security and legitimate fishing operators. This project is an advocacy and communications campaign that aims to secure the improved implementation of the EU IUU Regulation by the European Commission and EU Member States.

The next two years present a vital period for the implementation of the EU IUU Regulation and for taking action to improve transparency in the fishing sector. The Regulation—in force since 2010—has both important strengths and unacceptable weaknesses in how it has been implemented. To be successful, and to keep IUU fish out of the European marketplace, the EU IUU Regulation needs to be more proactively and uniformly implemented. Such action will require a combination of public campaigning and advocacy, both in Brussels and at national-level within key EU Member States.

The four grantees include the Environmental Justice Foundation, Oceana, Pew Charitable Trusts and WWF. The organizations will work jointly on some activities, and also on individual deliverables, to achieve the common objective to combat illegal fishing and improve transparency in the fisheries sector. Oceans 5 is providing funding for three years from summer 2014.

Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) fishing has a devastating impact on marine environments, livelihoods, food security and legal fishers. It is often facilitated by weak monitoring, corruption and a lack of transparency in the seafood supply chain.

As the EU is the world’s most valuable seafood market, it is in its interest to act on IUU fishing which threatens marine biodiversity, food security and legitimate fishing operators. This project is an advocacy and communications campaign that aims to secure the improved implementation of the EU IUU Regulation by the European Commission and EU Member States.

The next two years present a vital period for the implementation of the EU IUU Regulation and for taking action to improve transparency in the fishing sector. The Regulation—in force since 2010—has both important strengths and unacceptable weaknesses in how it has been implemented. To be successful, and to keep IUU fish out of the European marketplace, the EU IUU Regulation needs to be more proactively and uniformly implemented. Such action will require a combination of public campaigning and advocacy, both in Brussels and at national-level within key EU Member States.

The four grantees include the Environmental Justice Foundation, Oceana, Pew Charitable Trusts and WWF. The organizations will work jointly on some activities, and also on individual deliverables, to achieve the common objective to combat illegal fishing and improve transparency in the fisheries sector. Oceans 5 is providing funding for three years from summer 2014.