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CFP Reform Watch

Much debate has been stirred over the European Commission’s proposal that European Union fish stocks should be restored above levels that can produce Maximum Sustainable Yield (MSY) by 2015, according to a blog entry posted on 1 December 2011 on CFP Reform Watch. Some member states have indicated that this is not possible. But the concept of MSY covers both biomass and fishing mortality—and while reaching the biomass target by 2015 would be impossible for many stocks, the mortality target can indeed be reached.

“What shocked me when I started studying European fisheries, was that the fishing pressure applied in Europe was 2.5 times higher than it should be,” said Rainer Froese, project leader and coordinator of FishBase, at a seminar held in the European Parliament on 30 November 2011. “If all stocks were managed on MSY we would get around 13 million tons of fish each year. Today, we get only half of that, and it’s declining,” he said. Froese went on to explain that European Union member states have a legal obligation to reach MSY. Stocks with biomass above MSY would mean higher and more stable catches and higher profits for the industry as well as healthy marine ecosystems, Froese said. The problem is how to get there. The faster we get to MSY, the larger the profits would be, according to economists. Stopping fishing altogether for one to three years would be the fastest way, but even a small reduction in catches leads to a large increase in biomass, Froese said.

To read the blog, Explaining the Misunderstandings About MSY: Why It's Possible Tomorrow visit the CFP Reform Watch website.