Pilchard, European

It is doing well for the sardine stock in the Eastern Ionian Sea (GSA 20) and ICES Area 7 (the Celtic Sea and the waters west of Great Britain and Ireland). In both areas, the stock is at a sustainable level. In the Eastern Ionian Sea, biomass has been increasing since 2015 and fishing pressure is below the sustainable level. In ICES Area 7, biomass is among the highest levels in the time series, although official reference points for maximum sustainable yield are lacking. However, it is advised not to increase fishing pressure further.

Fisheries using purse seines have low bycatch and discards and cause no damage to the seabed. However, additional mortality may occur through slipping. CO₂ emissions and the risk of lost fishing gear are also low.

Management differs between the two areas. In the Eastern Ionian Sea, the stock is well monitored, but there is no specific management plan and enforcement is not equally effective across all countries. In ICES Area 7, the stock is also monitored, but international catch limits and a joint management plan are lacking. Since 2018, only the Cornish Sardine Management Association has applied additional rules to part of the fleet. This Cornish fishery is MSC-certified, while there is no FIP or MSC certification for the fishery in the Eastern Ionian Sea.

The stock of sardine off the coast of Morocco and Mauritania is healthy. Biomass is above the desired level, and fishing pressure remains within sustainable limits.

The fishery using purse seines has little bycatch and causes virtually no damage to the seabed. Discards are low, although additional mortality can occur as a result of slipping. The fishery using midwater otter trawls may catch marine mammals as bycatch, but the extent of this is insufficiently known. Discards are likely to be low, and the seabed is hardly affected. CO₂ emissions are low for both fishing methods. The risk of lost fishing gear is low for purse seines but higher for midwater otter trawls. Lost nets are an important problem in Moroccan waters.

Management is considered partly effective. Scientific advice is sound, but implementation and enforcement remain inadequate, particularly in Mauritania. Cooperation between the two countries and stakeholder involvement could also be improved. There is insufficient information to determine the impacts of the fishery on local communities. Several fisheries participate in a FIP, but none are MSC-certified.

It is unclear how the stock of sardine in ICES Division 7 is doing, as too little information is available to assess its status. In ICES Divisions 8a, 8b and 8d, the stock has been small for several years and recovery has failed to materialise, despite lower fishing pressure.

Fisheries using anchored gillnets and trammel nets can catch marine mammals, seabirds, sharks and rays as bycatch. The level of discarding is uncertain and may be high in trammel net fisheries. The risk of lost fishing gear is among the highest of the fishing methods assessed. CO₂ emissions are low, and the direct impact on the seabed is limited.

Management is considered only partly effective. In ICES Division 7, the stock is insufficiently monitored and there are no specific measures to control fishing pressure. In ICES Divisions 8a, 8b and 8d, the stock is monitored extensively and reference points have been established, but a precautionary management plan is lacking. Despite the existing measures, the stock remains in poor condition. The protection of vulnerable species, enforcement and measures to address lost fishing gear are also insufficiently effective.

It is doing poorly for the sardine stock in the Aegean Sea (GSA 22), the Adriatic Sea (GSA 17 and 18: Northern and Southern Adriatic Sea) and the Strait of Sicily (GSA 16). In all these areas, the stock is overfished and fishing pressure is too high. In the Aegean Sea, biomass is close to the critical limit and fishing pressure is approximately 150% of the sustainable level. In the Adriatic Sea, biomass has declined sharply since 2011 and the stock has been in an overfished state for almost ten years. The stock in the Strait of Sicily is also overfished. Therefore, all three assessments automatically receive a dark red rating.

Fisheries using purse seines in the Aegean Sea, the Adriatic Sea and the Strait of Sicily have low bycatch and cause no damage to the seabed. Discards are low, although additional mortality may occur through slipping. This fishing method more often receives a green score for its environmental impacts, but the fisheries as a whole score red because of the status of the stock and the effectiveness of management. Fisheries using floating pelagic pair trawls in the Adriatic Sea (GSA 17 and 18) perform slightly less favourably because of higher discard rates and greater uncertainty about their effects on the ecosystem. Fisheries using pelagic otter trawls in the Strait of Sicily (GSA 16) also have little impact on the seabed and relatively low discards, but their effects on vulnerable species and the ecosystem are insufficiently known.

Management is insufficiently effective in all areas. Although the stocks are monitored and the General Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean (GFCM) and the European Union have introduced management measures, either an effective management plan is lacking or the existing measures are not sufficiently complied with. Enforcement and cooperation between countries remain limited, meaning that the current measures have failed to stop overfishing. A number of fisheries participate in a FIP, but none are MSC-certified.