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Indicator Specification
MAIN ADVANTAGES OF THE INDICATOR
Annual change of proportion of commercial fish stocks within safe biological limits (SBL) in European Seas and per fisheries management unit.
landings are expressed in tonnes, stocks are expressed in number of stocks;
One of the main goals of the EU Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) is to take conservation measures to prevent fish stocks from being overexploited.
By comparing trends over time in recruitment (R), spawning stock biomass (SSB), landings and fishing mortality (F), a fairly reliable picture of stock development can be derived. In general when mortality exceeds recruitment and growth, a stock can be characterised as being outside safe biological limits.
The 'proportion of commercial fish stocks within and outside safe biological limits' is an indication of the extent to which fish stocks have not been sustainably managed, but overexploited.
Whether all stocks should be within safe biological limits is a societal/political choice. For the individual stocks, and for biodiversity, a sustainably managed stock needs to be within safe biological limits.
No targets have been specified
No related policy documents have been specified
With the introduction of the precautionary approach, a stock is considered to be outside 'Safe Biological Limits' (SBL) when the Spawning Stock Biomass (SSB) (the mature part of a stock) is below a biomass precautionary approach reference point (Bpa), or when the Fishing mortality (F) (an expression of the proportion of a stock that is removed by fishing activities in a year) exceeds a fishing mortality precautionary approach reference point (Fpa), or when both conditions exist. This is the approach followed for stocks in the north-east Atlantic and Baltic Sea.
In the Mediterranean, stock assessment is at a relative early stage of development judged by the criteria of North Atlantic fisheries, and the development of reference points is still underway. Stock assessment of the Mediterranean resources is based mainly on analysis of landing trends, biomass surveys, and the analysis of commercial catch per unit effort (CPUE) data, given the absence of complete or independent information on fishing intensity or fishing mortality, and stocks are assessed in terms of being over fished or not.
More details can be found in the specification sheet for EEA Core Set indicator 032 at http://themes.eea.europa.eu/IMS/IMS/ISpecs/ISpecification20041007132227/full_spec.
N/A
No methodology references available.
No uncertainty has been specified
No uncertainty has been specified
MAIN DISADVANTAGES OF THE INDICATOR
ANALYSIS OF OPTIONS
This indicator was selected because of its established methodology and inclusion in the EEA's core set of indicators.
Work specified here requires to be completed within 1 year from now.
Work specified here will require more than 1 year (from now) to be completed.
No resource needs have been specified
For references, please go to https://www.eea.europa.eu/data-and-maps/indicators/fisheries-european-commercial-fish-stocks or scan the QR code.
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