The goal of sustainable fishing remains distant. Overfishing in the Mediterranean and the Black Sea has fallen sharply over the past decade, but it still concerns 73% of the species traded, according to a UN report published on Wednesday 7 December.
In this area where one inhabitant in 1,000 is a fisherman, improving the management of fisheries resources is vital, both for the local economy and for the preservation of biodiversity, underlines this report by the General Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean (GFCM), of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).
The pressure is decreasing a little, particularly for species subject to multilateral management plans. However, “73% of commercial species are still overexploited and fishing pressure, although less strong than in the past, remains double what is considered sustainable”, alerts the report. The GFCM estimated overexploitation at 75% of the species marketed in 2018, and at 88% in 2012.
A call for a “transformation” of the fishing sector
An encouraging sign, the report notes “a notable decrease in the overfishing of stocks of European hake in the Mediterranean, turbot in the Black Sea and common sole in the Adriatic Sea, which are currently subject to one or more management plans”.
It is crucial for the countries concerned “to reverse the downward trend of aquatic resources” and “to establish links between profitability and sustainability”said Miguel Bernal, executive secretary of the CGPM, quoted in a press release.
“A Blue Transformation” of the fisheries sector, i.e. respecting marine ecosystems, “is the only way to ensure that this sector continues to support food production and the livelihoods of current and future generations”said Manuel Barange, director of the FAO Fisheries and Aquaculture Division, quoted in the press release.
