Download the report (available only in English): PDF

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The first meeting of the Subregional Committee for the Central Mediterranean (SRC-CM) of the General Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean (GFCM) Scientific Advisory Committee on Fisheries (SAC) was held at the GFCM headquarters in Rome, Italy, on 3–5 February 2016. The aims of the meeting were to: i) compile and discuss the status of central Mediterranean stocks as emanating from the GFCM Working Group on Stock Assessment of Demersal Species (WGSAD); ii) provide an advice in relation to the management of demersal fisheries in the Strait of Sicily as requested by the Commission and through Recommendation GFCM/39/2015/2 and iii) propose a list of activities of relevance to the subregion to be considered for SAC work plan 2016–2017.

The SRC-CM compiled a draft advice related to the management of demersal fisheries in the Strait of Sicily (Recommendation GFCM/39/2015/2), including a summary of the status of stocks, an advice on the reduction of fishing mortality required to achieve maximum sustainable yield, and advice on management measures to be implemented for these fisheries, including the recommendation to implement a gradual reduction of fishing mortality by applying spatial restrictions associated to nursery areas. In addition, the SRC-CM agreed on the importance to improve the coverage of scientific surveys – especially for areas where a management plan was under development such as the Strait of Sicily – and proposed a number of actions to be carried out in the central Mediterranean, including the identification of nursery areas for hake and shrimps in the Strait of Sicily and in neighboring areas.