A fisheries restricted area (FRA) is a geographically defined area in which some specific fishing activities are temporarily or permanently banned or restricted in order to improve the exploitation patterns and conservation of specific stocks as well as of habitats and deep-sea ecosystems.
In the Mediterranean and the Black Sea, 1 760 000 km2 of sea habitats are protected by ten FRAs established by the GFCM. This includes one large deep-water FRA (1 730 000 km2) in which the use of towed dredges and trawl nets in all waters deeper than 1000 metres is banned to protect deep-sea benthic habitats.
Resources
Publications
- Chapter 6. Fisheries management: Spatial management measures | The State of Mediterranean and Black Sea Fisheries (SoMFi) 2025
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The State of Mediterranean and Black Sea Fisheries 2025
The State of Mediterranean and Black Sea Fisheries provides the most comprehensive and up-to-date review of the status and trends of fisheries and aquaculture in the Mediterranean and the Black Sea.