Drift Net Report

It is possible that the Commission was already in receipt
of an advance copy of the study – but that only serves to compound the mystery.
The selection of quotes from the report which we reproduce below makes it quite
clear that:

· there is no justification for the ban (evidence
suggests minimal impact on target or bycatch species)

· the ban
would have severe economic consequences for drift net fishermen who use them

· the ban
would increase the administrative burden on member states

· monitoring of small-scale drift net fisheries
has not been seen as a priority because it has not been seen as a high risk
activity

For those who wish to read the report in its entirety here
is the link

For the Commission, however they got themselves into this embarrassing
fix, the priority now will be to find a face-saving formulae that will enable
it to climb down from the tree it has got stuck in with as much dignity and as
little loss of face as possible. One of the key aspect of the report is its
recognition that member states with drift net fisheries have tended not to
spend too much of their scarce resources on small-scale fisheries that were not
deemed to be a problem. This risk-based focus is at the heart of most modern
monitoring, surveillance and control approaches. However, that could change if
the Commission insists on additional monitoring to cover its faux pas.

STUDY IN
SUPPORT OF THE REVIEW OF THE EU REGIME ON THE SMALL-SCALE DRIFTNET FISHERIES

Final Report Selected Quotations

There is no
indication that authorised driftnets <2.5km currently employed by EU vessels
cause indiscriminate catches at comparative scales to the large-scale nets
previously employed and currently active small-scale driftnets identified in
the current study, take small
proportions of target species catches compared with other national fisheries.

There is a continued need to monitor and mitigate impacts
of driftnets on cetaceans, we consider this need to be concurrent with the need to monitor impacts in any passive net fishery
within the EU or used by EU vessels; based on their similar mode of
deployment and characteristics.

there is also a continued need to mitigate impacts of
driftnets on other species with special conservation and protection needs, to the same extent that there is a need in
any passive net fishery within the EU or used by EU vessels

There is no
indication that high levels of bycatch exist in currently active small-scale
driftnet fisheries identified through case studies in the North Sea, North
East Atlantic, Baltic Sea, Black Sea and the Mediterranean.

There is no evidence
to suggest stocks targeted by small-scale driftnets in the North Sea and North
East Atlantic are at risk of overexploitation from these fisheries

Current control means
are deemed to be effective at detecting net length infringements by most of
the MS’ authorities consulted; management and control authorities consulted in
case study consultations indicated that small scale driftnet fisheries are not considered to present a high risk
of infringements and therefore are not prioritised for surveillance.

However, infringements
have been reported in the Mediterranean

The extent that different stakeholders accept the
implementation of the ecosystem-based approach to fisheries management is
similar across regions. It seems that
the majority of the regions accept and try to adopt the ecosystem-based
approach to their fisheries management

Apparently, there is
very little emphasis on collecting data for driftnet fisheries over other
fisheries and the data collection
mechanism is oriented towards other fisheries across all regions.

the majority of the MS expressed the opinion that no adequate consultations have been held, a
view held especially by the fishermen that have been affected by the regime.

44 currently active driftnet fisheries were identified by
this study across 7 of the 10 MS surveyed. These fisheries account for around 3000 vessels fishing both in
marine and inland waters, targeting over
20 different species, including marine and anadromous and catadromous
species. All of the fisheries identified
can be characterised as small-scale, with the majority of vessels less than
10 m in length and operating from a range of ports within each Member State.
The vessels tend to polyvalent in
nature using a variety of other gears, often using drfitnets to provide flexibility at different times of the year
to target particular species.

Environmental
impacts of driftnet fisheries on target species were considered to be marginal

effective management
measures are in place for most of these fisheries

It remains a possibility
that risks have been over interpreted

risks posed by driftnet
fisheries are comparable to those from other passive gears commonly same
regions (e.g. set gillnets and
trammel nets).

Based on the information available for this evaluation, the risks posed by fisheries are likely to
be low for ‘least concern’ species identified, given indicative low levels
of effort resulting from these fisheries. However, for more vulnerable species,
low levels of interactions may pose more
serious risks, but the data does not exist to properly assess risk
quantitatively

Issues remain in some regions with the effectiveness of MS
control in relation to Annex VIII species (Reg EC 1239/98) (e.g.
Black Sea, Mediterranean)

It is not clear what environmental impact Policy Option 3
(Selected Bans) and Policy Option 4 (total ban) will have. Transfer of effort from driftnet fisheries to other metiers could
result in either positive or negative impacts on the environment depending
on the relative impact of the impacts of driftnets compared to the new gears.

driftnet fishers
will remain dependent on driftnet fisheries as their main fishing gear, or
as one of many gears that provides flexibility in fishing opportunities.

A (Selected Ban) will result in a substantial increase in
administrative burden for both EU and National administrations to implement,
though as described above it is not
clear if there would be any overall environmental benefit

There is the potential for fisheries to be banned due to a
failure for MS to prove achievement of specified targets, despite having no significant adverse environmental impacts, resulting
in unnecessary social and economic impacts on fishers.

A (Total Ban) will result in an increase in administrative burden for MS to implement,
particularly those MS which currently do not prioritise driftnet fisheries for
control activities. This Policy Option would result in significant social and economic impacts for affected fishers,