29 September 2014
The NFFO has already expressed, as part of its response to a recent Defra consultation, its support for the provision of a voluntary facility that would allow under-10m vessels to manage their own allocations (as part of a group or as an individual vessel) on the basis of their FQA allocations. We think that this facility will be most relevant to the 14% of higher catching under-10s, which account for around 70% of the under-10m fleets catches of quota species.
Whilst this approach will help remove some of the quota
pinch points that have arisen in some specific under-10 fisheries, through
better targeted and adaptive quota management, we are clear that for most
under-10m vessels this will not be the preferred option. The primary reason for
this is that the flexibility to alter target species to adapt to the changing
availability of different stocks is of central importance to most inshore
fishing vessels; and that this is best met through the retention of the pool
approach to quota management. This is exactly the position that I find myself
as the operator of an under-10m vessel on the south coast. We mainly target
crab and lobster but at certain times of the year it makes sense to target some
of the quota species that become available within our area. This is when the
flexibility of the pool is invaluable.
In the event that there is significant uptake of the voluntary option to accept and manage
under-10 FQAs, it will be important to safeguard fishing opportunities within
the remaining pool. With fewer high catching vessels fishing against the pool
the uptake of the pool quotas should be less too, all other things being equal.
But it will be equally important to tailor quota management to the under-10s
which remain under the pool arrangement.
This should involve a fundamental review of the arrangements
for the residual fleet operating within under-10m pool. This could include:
- Intelligence available to identify, forecast and
address potential quota pinch points - Underpinning arrangements, first introduced in
the 1990s to provider a safety-net for the under-10s in the event of TAC
reductions - The optimum use of unused quota available to the
pool, to use as currency to secure quota for which there is a need - The use of variable periods for quota limits to
reflect the specific characteristics of particular fisheries - Strengthened communications between the
under-10m fleet and quota managers to ensure period limits and quota tonnages
are aligned with what is required - The voluntary provision of precision data from
under-10m vessels to strengthen stock assessments and tailored quota management
The aim should be to make available to all under-10s the kind
of responsive, tailored, quota management that already brings benefits to those
vessels operating within producer organisations. There is no reason why
under-10m vessels in the pool arrangements should be second class citizens.
No one is claiming that these steps will be a panacea. After
all quotas are intended to constrain catches. But resolving the problem of the
high catching vessels operating within the under-10m pool, whilst safeguarding
the remaining fleet, has the makings of a balanced, workable approach.