New WWF research reveals that 92% of discarded sea creatures in the EU come from ‘bottom trawl fisheries’ which scrape the seafloor and swallow everything in their path.
In 2019, around 230,000 tonnes of discards were reported in the EU – roughly equivalent to the amount of cod that swam in the North Sea in the early 1970s, when the fish population was healthy. This is despite an EU law called the Landing Obligation that requires all vessels to bring everything they catch back to port.
WWF’s research looks at both unwanted bycatch (the incidental catching of animals other than the target seafood species) and discards (animals thrown overboard, usually already dead, as they aren’t the target species). The study analysed the data that is publicly available; according to EU fisheries control authorities, the number of unreported cases is considerably higher.
Stella Nemecky, fisheries expert at WWF-Germany said, “Discards are not only a waste of resources, but a cause of overfishing in European seas. They harm fish populations, ecosystems and biodiversity. They also tear gaps in fisheries data statistics and make it difficult for scientists to accurately assess the health of fish stocks.”
The EU’s fisheries control system – which ensures the Common Fisheries Policy is implemented and rules, including the Landing Obligation, are followed – is currently being reformed. As part of this, onboard cameras are looking set to become mandatory, but on which vessels and at what scale has not yet been decided…