Authorised catches of bluef in tuna cut by 5%

摘要

After long and complicated negotiations, the 48 member countries of the Interna tional Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) agreed, on 27 November, to reduce authorised catches by approximately 5% for 2011. The EU, which had barely succeeded in adopting a mandate favouring the maintenance of the quota at the 2010 level, consequently limits the damage. Fisheries Commis sioner Maria Damanaki, whose proposal for a "substantial" reduction in quotas was rejected by the Council, nevertheless finds that the ICCAT took a step "in the direction" of sustainable management of stocks of bluefin tuna and the other stocks concerned. Meeting in Brussels on 29 November, the EU fisheries ministers did not discuss the matter further.