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EU proposes fish management scheme

BRUSSELS, Nov. 11 (UPI) -- Barely 40 percent of the fish stocks in European waters are harvested sustainably, the European Commission said in its new fisheries proposal.

The European Commission said it adopted a proposal to set levels for the total allowable catch in the Atlantic, North Sea and other international waters in the eurozone.

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The commission said that more than 70 percent of European waters are so overfished that fishermen would catch more fish only if they fished less. Only about 40 percent of the stocks were managed sustainably, the commission added.

The commission said it was therefore proposing a 50 percent reduction in the total allowable catch and called on member states to adopt a review for specific fish stocks like cod.

"We must not lose sight of the basic facts," said European Fisheries Commissioner Maria Damanaki. "The amount of fish in the sea is limited and the amount of fish that can be caught each year without putting the future of the stocks at risk is limited, too."

European lawmakers have complained that Iceland and the autonomous Danish Faroe Islands are exploiting European accomplishments in the management of mackerel stocks.

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The issue was raised first by the Scottish government, which in late September expressed outrage over decisions by the Faroe Islands and Iceland to set quotas for mackerel fishing that the Scottish government said exceeded the total allowable catch.

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