OCEAN2012 launches the first ever European Fish Week

BRUSSELS  (June 5th, 2010) – A year after OCEAN2012 came to life, and coinciding with World Oceans Day on June 8th, the 70 member coalition dedicated to transforming European fisheries policy is launching the first ever European Fish Week.  

As a result of decades of chronic overfishing, the European Union has seen dramatic decreases in its once abundant stocks and has become the world's largest importer of fisheries products, with nearly 70 percent of its fish coming from outside the union according to the EU Commission. During this week of action from June 5th to 13th 2010, groups across Europe will hold activities to highlight the importance of the EU's Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) reform. Their focus will be a petition asking Fisheries and Maritime Affairs Commissioner Maria Damanaki to prioritise environmental sustainability in her anticipated outline of reform options.

Fisherman offloading catch in Vigo, Galicia.

“We are very excited by the launch of European Fish Week,” said Uta Bellion, director of the Pew Environment Group's European Marine Programme and OCEAN2012 coordinator.

"We are petitioning Commissioner Damanaki to put the environment first in order to improve the state of fish stocks and fishers,” Bellion said.

“Europeans will want to see that their opinions have been taken on board in the CFP reform options she presents in the coming weeks.”

European Fish Week events

For a list of Fish Week activities, including film screenings, scuba dives, teacher training days, website launches and debates, see www.ocean2012.eu/europeanfishweek.

Contact:

For further information please contact:
Mike Walker, +32 476 622575 [email protected]
Roxane Brown, + 44 7957 631142 [email protected]

Notes to Editors:

The petition can be found at www.ocean2012.eu/petition.

OCEAN2012 is an alliance of organisations dedicated to transforming European fisheries policy, to stop overfishing, end destructive fishing practices and deliver fair and equitable use of healthy fish stocks. This year we are calling on decision -makers to enshrine environmental sustainability as the overarching principle of the future Common Fisheries Policy.

OCEAN2012 was initiated, and is coordinated, by the Pew Environment Group, the conservation arm of The Pew Charitable Trusts, a non-governmental organisation working to end overfishing in the world´s oceans. The founding members of OCEAN2012 are the Coalition for Fair Fisheries Arrangements, The Fisheries Secretariat, NEF (New Economics Foundation), the Pew Environment Group and Seas at Risk. For further information on OCEAN2012, please visit www.ocean2012.eu.

OCEAN2012 is committed to shaping a Common Fisheries Policy that:

1. Enshrines environmental sustainability as the over-arching principle without which economic sustainability is unobtainable;
2. Ensures decisions are taken at the most appropriate levels and in a transparent way, ensuring effective participation of stakeholders;
3. Delivers sustainable fishing capacity at EU and regional level;
4. Makes access to fisheries resources conditional on environmental and social criteria and
5. Ensures public funds are only used in a way that serves the public good and alleviates social impacts in the transition to sustainable fisheries.