The Net Effect? - Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society

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The Net Effect?
A WDCS report for Greenpeace
used to catch tuna, swordfish and similar listed
species, and their total prohibition from 1
January 2002. Both these provisions apply to
all EU waters (with the exception of the Baltic
Sea, which is exempt from both provisions)
and, outside those waters, to all EU fishing
vessels. In addition, Regulation (EC) No
973/2001 prohibits the encircling of schools or
groups of marine mammals with purse seines,
except in the case of vessels operating with a
dolphin mortality limit (DML) under the conditions
laid down in the Agreement of the
International Dolphin Conservation Program
in the Eastern Pacific Ocean.
5.3.2 The Habitats Directive
Council Directive 92/43/EEC on the
Conservation of Natural Habitats and
Wild Fauna and Flora (the ‘Habitats
Directive’) was adopted in May 1992.
Article 2 of the Directive places a duty
on Member States to ensure that any
measures taken under the Directive are
designed to “maintain or restore, at a
favourable conservation status, natural
habitats and species of wild fauna … of
Community interest” (which include all
cetaceans). Article 11 requires Member
States to undertake surveillance of the conservation
status of these natural habitats
and species. Article 12 requires Member
States to establish a system of strict protection
for the animal species listed in Annex
IV(a) (which include all cetaceans).
Most specifically, Article 12.4 requires
Member States to establish a system to
monitor the incidental capture and killing of
Annex IV(a) species. In the light of the information
gathered, Member States are required
to take further research or conservation
measures as required to ensure that incidental
capture and killing does not have a significant
negative impact on the species concerned.
It is evident that Member States are not
meeting their obligations under Article 12.4
of the Habitats Directive, and this fact has
been acknowledged by the European
Commission in the Explanatory
Memorandum accompanying its proposal
for a new Council Regulation on cetacean
bycatch (CEC 2003a). This states that “the
Commission has come to the conclusion that
the measures taken so far are insufficient or
lacking in coordination” and that “additional
Community action is needed in the fisheries
sector to improve, in a consistent and
cooperative manner, measures aimed at the
conservation of small cetaceans.”
5.4 Proposed EU regulation on
incidental catches of
cetaceans
As part of the 2002 review of the CFP, the
European Commission set out an Action
Plan to integrate environmental protection
requirements into the CFP. Part of this was a
commitment to introduce a “new set of technical
conservation measures designed to
reduce bycatch of cetaceans to levels guaranteeing
favourable conservation status of
cetacean populations before 31 December
2002” (CEC 2002c).
In June 2003 the Commission published its
Proposal for a Council Regulation laying
down measures concerning incidental catches
of cetaceans in fisheries and amending
Regulation (EC) No 88/98 (CEC 2003a). This
Proposal is based on advice provided by ICES
(e.g. ICES 2002) and the Subgroup on Fishery
and Environment (SGFEN) of the Scientific,
Technical and Economic Committee for
Fisheries (STECF) (CEC 2002a and b) and
also on various consultations.
The Proposal consists of three main
measures:
1 restrictions on the use of driftnets in the
Baltic Sea (Article 9: introducing an immediate
length limit of 2.5 km, and phasing
them out completely by 1 January 2007);
2 the mandatory use of acoustic deterrent
devices in certain fisheries (Articles 2 and