Common Fisheries Policy Flashcards
What are the objectives of the CFP?
1) Ensuring that declining fish stocks are exploited responsibly
2) Protecting the environment and the interests of the fishing industry and consumers
How does it work?
Member states have equal access for vessel in the EU’s exclusive fishing zone, 200 nautical miles from its coastline.
What are member states’ own rights under the CFP?
Member states have a 12-mile zone around their own coastlines within which their own fishing vessels have exclusive rights.
What is TACs?
Total Allowable Catches, which is a system to sustain the Atlantic and North Sea fish stocks.
What is the Community Fisheries Control Agency?
It became operational in 2007, and was intended to strengthen the uniformity and effectiveness of enforcement by pooling EU and national means of inspection and control, and co-ordinating enforcement activities.
Environmental criticism of the CFP
Its support for an overly large EU fishing fleet, harmful subsidies and a lack of focus on ecosystem management
What was the impact of Factortame?
It was a declaration of EU legal primacy, thus revising the traditional notion of legal sovereignty in the UK
What is the limitation in implementation?
The CFP depends on commitment at a national level but due to poor implementation by some national governments, Spain, the CFP has seen fish stocks decrease dramatically
What is the problem arising from fishing quota?
Billions of dead fish have been thrown back into the sea because they did not meet species quotas.
What was introduced to deal with discards?
To tackle discards, a Conservation Credits scheme was introduced in 2007 and from 2015 onwards, a landing obligation will gradually be introduced.
How does the Maximum Sustainable Yield work?
Species quota are based on their rate of reproduction rather than on annual negotiations
Why have Third Country Agreements been controversial?
Fishing by EU vessels off the coast of North Africa has crippled local fishing communities.
What are Third Countries Agreements?
The EU as expanded its fishing areas by paying other governments to allow EU ships to fish in their waters.
Failures in Third Countries Agreements
• Iceland
Tension arises with the suspended Icelandic accession negotiations, as Iceland’s economy is reliant on fishing
What is the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund
It was established in 2014 to replace the European Fisheries Fund as the main fund through which the EU will support fisheries across the union.
Argument for CFP
• Fairer prices
The restructuring of the fishing industry in the EU has ensured fairer prices for efficient European fishermen
Against CFP
• inconsistent
The willingness of national administrations to enforce the policy varies widely, making it an inconsistent and ineffective policy
Against CFP
• damage to the environment
The damage to the environment has been increased rather than decreased due to CFP measures, which waste natural resources.
Against CFP
• Fish stocks
Through the practice of dumping catches that do not conform to the TAC species quotas, fish stocks have continued to decrease
Achievement
• fish stocks
Over the last five years, the UK-landed fish has increased by 20%
Advantage of CFP
• Sharing quote
EU countries have to use transparent and objective criteria when they distribute the national quota among their fishermen.
Failures of CFP to the UK
Around 85% of the current catch of the Danish fleet is in UK waters and 80% of the current catch of the fleet from Normandy.
Positive reforms in 2014
• Double catches
From 2017, fishermen will be allowed to catch twice as many plaice in the Channel, 16% more cod.
Negatives of reforms in 2014
• overfished
Nearly two-thirds of European fish stocks are overfished and 85% are below healthy levels.
