06 Aug 2024
A Private Members Bill to regulate and limit bottom trawling in MPAs, introduced by Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick, has had its first reading in the House of Lords. As currently drafted it states that the regulations must prohibit bottom trawling in MPAs. These are defined as including Marine Conservation Zones, Nature Conservation Marine Protected Areas, […]
06 Aug 2024
Hopes for closure on a fair deal to stop governments bankrolling overfishing flopped yet again at the recent General Council meeting of the World Trade Organization (WTO) in Geneva. Scheduled decision-making sessions aimed at closing the second half of a legally binding treaty to curb harmful fisheries subsidies were downgraded to a discussion at the […]
06 Aug 2024
Legislation came into force in June 2024 enabling UK fisheries administrations to launch permitting regimes for the recreational angling of Bluefin Tuna in their waters. Permits have now been issued to 89 vessels to recreationally target Bluefin Tuna using rod and line, on a catch and release basis, following a resurgence of the species in […]
30 Jul 2024
The European Commission launched infringement proceedings against five EU Member States for failure to control and enforce the landing obligation – notably against France, Spain (INF_21_4681), the Netherlands, Belgium and Ireland (INF_21_5342) noting that there is a need to help ensure the end of the “extensive, illegal and undocumented discarding of catches in several sea […]
30 Jul 2024
Landings of wrasse species from the wild have been rapidly increasing, due to their usefulness as cleaner fish in salmon aquaculture facilities. Image: Goldsinny wrasse – Ctenolabrus rupestris. Credit seawater.no In May 2021, following calls from the Sustainable Inshore Fisheries Trust (SIFT) and other stakeholders to strengthen the voluntary wrasse fishery management measures, […]
23 Jul 2024
Since 2023, the Our Seas Coalition has been collating testimonies from across Scotland of people’s first-hand experiences and local knowledge of Scotland’s inshore Seas ahead of its touring “Coastal Testimonies” exhibition. The exhibition involved gathering testimonies and portrait photographs from individuals from around Scotland including commercial fishers, skippers, sea anglers, politicians, naturalists, scientists, local businesses, […]
23 Jul 2024
New Legislation comes into force which aims to help ensure cockle fisheries in Wales remain environmentally sustainable and economically viable for the future. The Cockle Fishing Management and Permitting (Specified Area) (Wales) Order 2024 will simplify regulations and give the Welsh Government new tools to flexibly manage each cockle fishery in response to evidence about […]
23 Jul 2024
A hi-tech underwater device that scans water samples for potentially dangerous algae blooms – the first of its type to be deployed in UK waters – has been operational for over a year at a Scottish Sea Farms site in Shetland. The Imaging FlowCytobot (IFCB) uses a combination of lasers and cameras to detect and […]
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