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Commission announces possible measures against the Faroe Islands over
herring fisheries
The European Commission has notified the fisheries authorities of the
Faroe Islands of its intention to adopt measures in support of the
sustainability of herring fisheries shared with the Faroe Islands.
This notification is a preliminary step which aims at giving the Faroe
Islands an opportunity to be heard in advance.The measures may include
restrictions in the imports of herring and associated species fished by Faroese
interests and restrictions on the access of Faroese vessels in EU harbours
except for safety reasons.
The stock of Atlanto-Scandian herring is fished by Norway, the Russian
Federation, Iceland, the Faroe Islands and the European Union with management
measures commonly set up through consultation among these countries.
The Faroe Islands withdrew from the consultations on the management of
the stock for 2013 and announced that they would set up an autonomous quota at a
level 145% higher than their 2012 quota.
This was set against a context in which all other parties to the
fishery had agreed to reduce their quotas by 26% for conservation reasons.
By this action, the sustainability of the stock is highly compromised
and its recovery possibilities largely diminished.
This Commission action aims to ensure sustainability to avoid a
collapse of the stock which would mean that many fishermen and their families
would lose their income.
The action is based on Regulation (EU) No 1026/2012, which foresees the
adoption of measures against countries that fail to cooperate with the EU in the
management of stocks of common interest and adopt management measures that put
fish stocks at risk.
The Faroe Islands is a self-governed territory within the Danish Realm
and is not part of the European Union.