TBX n° : 224
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Fokion Fotiadis is Director General of DG FISH since 1 January 2007.
How does DG FISH contribute to improving the daily life of EU citizens?
Fokion Fotiadis: The EU is the second largest producer of fish in the world, after China. Our fishing industry may not be big if compared with other economic sectors, but it still provides an income for more than 190 000 people. Our core task is to ensure that the European fishing industry is sustainable. Fish stocks have come under intense pressure over the last years. Many of them are declining or even at risk of collapse, with all the negative consequences you can imagine: for the environment, for bio-diversity, and of course for the fishermen themselves. Our job is to find the right balance between the need to reduce overfishing and fishermen´s immediate economic concerns. This is not always easy, but has a big effect on everyday life, not only for fishermen, but for anyone who eats fish. And that means most of us!
What are the main contributors to overfishing?
Fokion Fotiadis: The main cause of overfishing is overcapacity – that is, too many boats chasing too few fish. Many of these boats, especially in the developed world, have been built quite recently and at considerable expense, which creates a powerful incentive to fish more than is allowed. Some people are driven by greed – illegal fishing can be very lucrative. Others do it simply to make ends meet, but with the same negative consequences for the fish stocks. Of course, we need to be tough on the crime, as well as on the cause of the crime. To limit overcapacity, public aid to support the building of new boats was banned in the EU even before the Reform of the CFP in 2002. Since then several schemes have been put in place to adapt the fishing fleets. Moreover, to make sure that fishing rules are respected, the Commission supports Member States’ controls of fishing activities, and takes them to court when they fail in their duty. In the end, though, even the most sophisticated control system has its limits. The seas are huge; no inspection authority can possibly know what is going on everywhere, all the time. It is therefore important that fishermen understand and accept the rules, and that their knowledge and experience are taken into account when decisions are taken. The creation of the Regional Advisory Councils, where stakeholders can come together to offer the Commission their advice, has been one of the most important achievements of the Reform to date. What does the Commission propose to promote a sustainable aquaculture in Europe? Fokion Fotiadis: EU fish farmers have built up a solid expertise that allows them to meet high environmental and food quality standards, and they have earned a good reputation for their products. However, they also face important challenges such as limitations of space, access to water, fierce competition from third country producers and environmental concerns. To allow the sector to reach its full potential, especially when considering the growth of aquaculture globally, we need to look at how we can make best use of all the opportunities we have. We have recently launched a debate on how we can establish the best conditions for the sustainable development of aquaculture.
What is the core message of the Commission’s Green Paper “Towards a future maritime policy for the Union”?
Fokion Fotiadis: There are literally hundreds of economic activities which involve the sea: whether you’re building an offshore windfarm, laying a telecommunications cable, or exploring the potential of marine biotechnology – all these things are vital for our continued prosperity, and they all interact with one another in highly complex ways. The idea behind the Green paper is to prevent these interactions from ending up as conflicts, and turn them into something which is mutually supportive, which creates real synergies. And that should be the goal of a future maritime policy – to show that environmental protection and economic growth which produces wealth and jobs can work together, that they don’t have to be a zero sum game.

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(TBX n° 224, Page 8, paru le 2007-05-31)

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