While the EU's leadership in protecting deep-sea ecosystems must be acknowledged, according to the study, there is still work to be done.
Photo: Adobe Stock.
A new open-access study published in Science Advances revealed that bottom fishing persists in European waters despite the closure of 87 protected areas ordered by the European Commission in November 2022. However, according to the release of the study by the Deep Sea Conservation Coalition (DSCC), although not completely, these protections have been successful in reducing bottom contact fishing activities in vulnerable deep-sea ecosystems.
Back in 2016, the European Union adopted the Deep-Sea Access Regulation, which banned all bottom trawling below 800 m in EU waters in the Northeast Atlantic. This regulation, which came into force in 2017, also sought to safeguard habitats considered vulnerable marine ecosystems (VMEs) known or likely to be present between 400 m and 800 m depth.
The UN General Assembly (UNGA) identifies VMEs as deep-sea ecosystems that are particularly sensitive to human activities and environmental changes. They are characterized by habitat-forming organisms, including cold-water corals, and prominent features such as seamounts - vast underwater mountains.
In addition, the species typically found in them are fragile, slow-growing, slow to recover, and as such, highly susceptible to harm from activities including bottom trawl fishing. Due to the variety of habitats they offer, these areas are often biodiversity-rich, with many commercial fish populations congregating to spawn, forage, and shelter.
Subsequently, already in November 2022, the European Commission closed 87 areas between 400-800 meters depth of European waters to bottom contact fishing, thus implementing one of the key provisions of the 2016 regulation.
The study now published, whose lead author is Dr Lissette Victorero, also a researcher for the DSCC, showed that although these protections have been successful in reducing them, bottom fishing activities persist.
"In this study, we present independent analysis of bottom-fishing activities within the EU's closures of VMEs," Dr Victorero explained. "Our findings suggest that, while the 2022 closures have achieved an encouraging reduction in fishing activity, continued bottom-contact fishing within these fragile habitats reveals gaps in compliance and enforcement."
Based on data from Global Fishing Watch, and by comparing apparent fishing activity before the EU closures - November 2021 to October 2022 -, with post-closure data -November 2022 to October 2023-, the study reveals an 81% reduction in bottom contact fishing activity. According to the study, this translates to a total of 3,500 fishing hours took place following the closures, down from 19,000 hours in the previous year.
"These closures are an essential step in protecting some of the ocean's most vulnerable ecosystems, but ensuring their long-term success requires further mapping and protection of VMEs in EU waters and stricter adherence to regulations," concluded the DSCC researcher.
Fan coral in the Northeast Atlantic. Cold-water corals are often found in vulnerable marine ecosystems.
Photo: Schmidt Ocean Institute / Deep Sea Conservation Coalition.
In its release, the Deep Sea Conservation Coalition said that while the reduction in fishing activity is promising, the study revealed continuing threats to these vital and vulnerable ecosystems. Analysis of the data found that, of the 3,500 hours after the closure, Spanish vessels accounted for most of the activity, with 1,769 hours of bottom fishing, followed by the Portuguese fleet.
Specifically, data managed by the DSCC noted that three Portuguese vessels equipped with bottom trawls appeared to have engaged in significant bottom trawling activity, repeatedly targeting a VME closure on the Western Iberian Shelf. Despite protective measures, this area supported more than 500 hours of fishing effort.
The study also noted that, unlike them, the Spanish fleet made brief and rapid fishing incursions, which could go unnoticed by vessel monitoring system (VMS) data. In the DSCC's view, this underlines the need for States to improve and coordinate surveillance and monitoring of their fleets to ensure effective fisheries management in order to comply with VMS protections and international commitments.
For its part, the Spanish fishing sector already showed its disagreement with the closures at the time they were implemented, considering that the decision to close those 87 bottom fishing areas did not take into account the best scientific information available, nor the serious socioeconomic impact involved. Therefore, in December 2022, asked the EU Commission to reconsider its decision.
They were not alone. Tensions between fishermen from all over Europe and the EU persisted, and in May 2023 different fishing organizations and fishermen gathered against the initiative by participating in a strike.
However, beyond compliance by fishing sector professionals, the study also identified gaps on the part of the European Union. According to the Deep Sea Conservation Coalition, significant levels of bottom contact fishing were identified in many areas of EU waters where VMEs have been identified but remain unprotected due to prolonged political delays in implementing the next round of closures, which should proceed annually.
Alongside this, over the two years covered by DSCC's study, an estimated 19,200 hours of trawling activity were recorded at depths below 800 meters in EU waters, despite the Deep-Sea Access Regulation which sought to protect these areas from trawling. Collectively, the release claimed, these activities present a serious threat to the health and sustainability of VMEs across EU waters.
"The European Union's leadership in protecting deep-sea ecosystems must be celebrated, with high levels of compliance identified by this study being an indication that EU member States are taking the collective protection of vulnerable marine ecosystems seriously," said Bronwen Golder, Global Seamounts Campaign Lead at DSCC, commenting on this.
However, she also noted that "The reality of continued fishing activity by a handful of vessels in areas where the presence of VMEs has been confirmed sends a clear signal that the next phase of recommended VME closures under the Deep-Sea Access Regulation should be progressed without delay."
Example of surveillance and monitoring of fishing vessel activity around the Strait of Gibraltar during the period, 2017-2021, by Global Fishing Watch.
Map: Global Fishing Watch (2023).
Finally, in its release on the study on bottom fishing published in Science Advances, the Deep Sea Conservation Coalition recalled that it has been 20 years since the international community recognized the value of VMEs and the need to protect them.
Then, it added, parties to the UN General Assembly and Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), involving EU member States, committed to protecting VMEs including seamounts from destructive fishing practices, recognizing "the immense importance and value of deep-sea ecosystems and the biodiversity they contain."
According to the DSCC, the VME closures by the EU mark a significant step forward in implementing these twenty-year commitments, but, to fully and finally achieve protection of all seamounts from destructive practices, more effective monitoring and management is needed.
Therefore, as a conclusion to the study, the DSCC urged the EU to continue with the implementation of the Deep Sea Access Regulation including, as a priority in 2025, the adoption of new closures that would see all seamounts and other VMEs in EU waters protected.
It should be noted that the EU Commission this week launched a call for evidence to shape the European Oceans Pact, one of the key objectives for European fisheries and oceans following the Commissioner for Fisheries and Oceans for 2024-2029, Costas Kadis took office.
The initiative intends to align EU policies related to oceans under a unified framework, ensuring coordinated efforts to address how human activities impact marine ecosystems, mitigate the effects on coastal areas, and maximize the benefits oceans provide.
