Highlights

Fisheries inspectors checking the mesh size of a net
© European Communities

On 20 November, EU fisheries ministers agreed on the prolongation for 18 months of transitional technical measures to better conserve fish stocks, to cut down discards and to protect vulnerable marine habitats on Europe's Atlantic coast and in the North Sea.

In Europe, fishing is usually well targeted. Fishermen use appropriate methods and techniques to catch the species they want. None the less, they often find other fish and marine organisms mixed up with the target species. This is what is called by-catch. Technical measures are a vital tool in reducing by-catches and discards of unwanted fish and in promoting environmentally friendly fishing.

Together with catch and effort limitations, technical measures play a key role in ensuring sustainable fisheries. In particular, they help to protect juvenile fish in order to reduce the threat to future yields. Technical measures include such provisions as minimum landing sizes, rules governing mesh size and composition of catches, closed areas and seasons, and the types of fishing gear which may or may not be used.

More information:
Council Press release (pdf) 
Council webcast of press conference