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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Environment
Karen McVeigh

EU slammed over failure to protect marine life from ‘destructive’ fishing

A net, full of fish including seabed-dwelling flat fish, being hauled to the surface
A trawl net, full of fish, as it is hauled to the surface. Bottom trawling is one of the most widespread, and controversial, means of industrial-scale fishing. Photograph: Colin Munro/Alamy

The waters of the EU are in a “dismal” state, with only a third of fish populations studied in the north-east Atlantic considered to be in good condition, according to more than 200 scientists and conservationists.

The analysis, issued on Monday, follows a scathing report from the European court of auditors two years ago, which warned that the EU had failed to halt marine biodiversity loss in Europe’s waters and to restore fishing to sustainable levels.

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