Need for further
research and data collection
Recommendation 19
We agree with Defra that the Government should take action
in order obtain more accurate estimates of small cetacean populations.
(Paragraph 107)
Defra has committed 435k euros to a survey of abundance of small
cetaceans in the North Sea and adjacent waters but the total projected
cost of this project is of the order of 6 million euros. Defra
has urged the Commission to join the UK in providing funding for
this project which is being led by the Sea Mammal Research Unit
and would provide reliable and up-to-date estimates of cetacean
abundance. The study would also enable us to assess the significance
of levels of by-catch in conservation terms.
Recommendation 20
We invite the Government to specify:
(a) what minimum percentages of fishing effort it considers
would need to be covered by independent monitors in order to enable
levels of by-catch to be assessed at a statistically valid level;
and
(b) what categories of person it intends to employ to act as
independent monitors. (Paragraph 112)
(a) The Council regulation makes observer coverage mandatory within
a Member States statistically based monitoring scheme. It requires
that, "as a general rule, monitoring schemes shall be based
on a sampling strategy designed to allow the estimation of the
by-catch rates of cetaceans for the most frequent species in the
by-catch per unit effort by a given fleet to achieve a coefficient
of variation not exceeding 0.30". Our scientists are content
that this will ensure a statistically valid assessment. Where
there is not sufficient good scientific data to give this level
of confidence, the Regulation sets out minimum levels of fishing
effort to be monitored for different fisheries. Again, we are
content with the percentages agreed.
(b) The qualifications required of observers are set out in detail
in the agreed Council Regulation at article 5. We, other Member
States, will need to comply with these requirements in implementing
a monitoring scheme.
Reporting
back to the Committee
Recommendation 21
We recommend that the Government report back to us each year
about the numbers of small cetaceans caught as by-catch, and on
progress made in addressing the problem.
The Council regulation requires member states to provide a comprehensive
annual report on observations of by-catch. The UK also reports
each year on its activities in relation to small cetaceans to
ASCOBANS (Agreement on the Conservation of Small Cetaceans of
the Baltic and North Seas). We would be happy to provide similar
reports or copies of these reports to the Committee.
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
April 2004