Considerations on COM(2023)403 - EU position in the Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organisation - Main contents

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dossier	COM(2023)403 - EU position in the Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organisation.
document	COM(2023)403
date	December 11, 2023

(1)By Council Regulation (EEC) No 3179/78 16 , the Union concluded the Convention on Cooperation in the Northwest Atlantic Fisheries (‘NAFO Convention’), which established the Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organisation (‘NAFO’). Pursuant to Council Decision 2010/717/EU 17 , the Union concluded the fourth amendment to the NAFO Convention that established the Commission of the Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organisation (‘NAFO Commission’).

(2)The NAFO Commission adopts measures to ensure the long-term conservation and sustainable use of the fishery resources in the NAFO Convention area (‘the regulatory Area’) and to safeguard the marine eco-systems in which these resources occur. Such measures may become binding upon the Union.

(3)Regulation (EU) No 1380/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council 18 provides that the Union is to ensure that fishing and aquaculture activities are environmentally sustainable in the long-term and are managed in a way that is consistent with the objectives of achieving economic, social and employment benefits, and of contributing to the availability of food supplies. It also provides that the Union is to apply the precautionary approach to fisheries management, and is to aim to ensure that exploitation of living marine biological resources restores and maintains the population of harvested species above levels, which can produce the maximum sustainable yield. It further provides that the Union is to take management and conservation measures based on best available scientific advice, to support the development of scientific knowledge and advice, to gradually eliminate discards and to promote fishing methods that contribute to more selective fishing and the avoidance and reduction, as far as possible, of unwanted catches, to fishing with low impact on marine ecosystem and fishery resources. Besides, Regulation (EU) No 1380/2013 specifically provides that those objectives and principles are to be applied by the Union in the conduct of its external fisheries relations.

(4)In line with the Biodiversity 19 , Climate Adaptation 20 and Farm to Fork Strategies 21 , it is essential to protect nature and reverse the degradation of ecosystems. The risks stemming from climate change and loss of biodiversity must not jeopardise the availability of the goods and services that healthy marine ecosystems provide to fishers, coastal communities and humanity at large.

(5)The Plastics Strategy 22 refers to specific measures to reduce plastics and marine pollution as well as the loss or abandonment at sea of fishing gear. Furthermore, the Zero pollution Action Plan 23 aims at reducing by 50% plastic litter at sea and by 30% micro-plastics released into the environment.

(6)Under the International Ocean Governance Joint Communication 24 , marine biodiversity protection and conservation are key priorities under the EU’s external action The EU is the most prominent actor in Regional Fisheries Management Organisations (RFMOs) and fisheries bodies worldwide. There, the EU promotes the sustainability of fish stocks, promotes transparent decision-making based on sound scientific advice, enhances scientific research, and strengthens compliance.

(7)It is appropriate to establish the position to be taken on the Union’s behalf in the meetings of the NAFO Commission for the period 2024-2028, as the NAFO conservation and enforcement measures may be binding on the Union and capable of decisively influencing the content of Union law, namely, Council Regulation (EC) No 1005/2008 25 ; Council Regulation (EC) No 1224/2009 26 ; and Regulation (EU) 2017/2403 of the European Parliament and of the Council 27 , and Regulation (EU) 2019/833 of the European Parliament and of the Council.

(8)Currently, the position to be taken on the Union’s behalf in the meetings of the NAFO Commission is established by Council Decision (EU) 2019/863. it is appropriate to repeal that Decision and establish a new Decision for the period 2024-2028.

(9)In view of the evolving nature of fishery resources in the Regulatory Area and the consequent need for the Union’s position to take account of new developments, including new scientific and other relevant information presented before or during the meetings of the NAFO Commission, procedures should be established for the year-to-year specification of the Union’s position for the period 2024-2028. Those positions should be in line with the principle of sincere cooperation among the Union institutions enshrined in Article 13(2) of the Treaty on the European Union.