Pelagic pilot project discard ban, 2013 - 2104

The new EU obligation to land all catches of regulated species will apply to the pelagic fisheries from 1 January 2015 onwards. Although the pelagic fisheries are generally described as single species fisheries with relatively low discard rates, the new regulation still poses a number of specific challenges that need to be addressed prior to the implementation of the regulation. In the first half of 2013, the Pelagic Freezer-trawler Association (PFA) already recognized the need to prepare well for the new regulation even though the regulation had not been formally agreed at that stage. The PFA initiated a pilot project to explore possible mitigation strategies to avoid unwanted bycatch, to handle and use unwanted bycatch and to find feasible strategies to document and control the catches. The results of the pilot project would also inform discussions on the future technical measures regulations that impact on discards. The project started in August 2013 and finished in February 2014. IMARES was commissioned to lead the project with inputs from a consortium consisting of the fishing companies that are members to the PFA, the Dutch ministry of Economic Affairs, the Dutch inspection agency NVWA, Maritiem BV and Archipelago Marine Research. The project was funded by the PFA, who received a compensation in the form of a limited scientific quota