Environmental component

1. Sound management of targeted fish stocks

A sound management of fish stocks of commercial interest by: 

• Relevant evaluation, use and monitoring of relevant stocks;
• The good intra-specific selectivity of fishing gears: the ability to target individuals of interest and to avoid the capture of individuals to be protected (e.g. juveniles and breeders); 
• The fight against waste and discard: individuals captured and not taken advantage of, either because they are damaged or not matching the market criteria. 
   

2. Maintenance of the biodiversity

The maintenance of the biodiversity of the considered ecosystems by:

• A sound management of the associated species (e.g. fish, marine mammals and marine reptiles, birds); 
• The good inter-specific selectivity of fishing gears: the ability to target individuals of the species of interest and to avoid the capture of unwanted species.

3. Protection of the environment

The protection of the environment through:

• The respect of marine ecosystems, especially fragile areas (e.g. coral reefs, mangroves, wetlands, coastal areas); 
• The fight against marine and/or atmospheric pollutions from fishing activity; 
• The fight against marine and/or atmospheric pollutions from land activities (e.g. fish processing, manufacturing and maintenance of fishing boats and fishing devices, waste management).  

4. Ecosystem approach

In an ideal situation, the environmental component of a responsible fishing policy should be based on an ecosystem approach. It should consider an ecosystem as a whole, taking into account its biodiversity. The objective is to sustainably utilize the entire system, rather than only targeted species.