Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2006-05-15-Speech-1-138"
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"en.20060515.17.1-138"2
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".
Mr President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, although the continental fishing of eel is not officially subject to the common fisheries policy, we are all aware of the reduction in stocks suffered by this species over recent years, and this could put eel at risk of extinction unless we implement an action plan within the European Union.
With a view to tackling this situation, the Commission is presenting us with a proposal for a Regulation containing measures which reflect good intentions but which, in my humble opinion, could be improved. In the Basque Country, which I represent here, we are not just well acquainted with the adult eel, but also its young – the elver – which has historically been an ingredient in one of the most succulent and highly-prized dishes in our cuisine.
For this historical reason, we are aware that the life cycle of our eel is very long, that it is a migratory species and that the females, before dying, travel for a year to spawn in the Sargasso Sea, in the Atlantic Ocean between Bermuda and Puerto Rico, where they lay up to 20 million leaf-shaped eggs which float freely in ball-shaped groups and are carried by sea currents, taking a year to reach the North American coasts and up to three years to reach European coasts. When they reach our rivers they have undergone a metamorphosis: they have become elvers and they carry on growing until they mature into eels.
Since their fishing depends on the lunar cycle, the ban on their fishing from the first to the fifteenth day of each month could lead either to the almost complete closure of that fishing or, quite the opposite, it may have no effect on it, depending on the phase of the moon during that fortnight. It would be more effective to reduce the fishing season in such a way as to reduce the fishing effort by half.
Furthermore, the proposed timetable does not appear viable, since the plans require coordination amongst different regions and Member States, and that takes time.
Furthermore, since the current knowledge for calculating escape rate is not sufficient and the models currently being investigated within the SLIME project will not be available in the immediate future, the best option is to delay until 2008 the authorisation to fish eel during seasonal bans, as an exception based on a particular management plan. We know that many people live from eel fishing and we cannot destroy the sector, but rather we must find a balance which guarantees the survival of resources at the same time.
I would like to congratulate the rapporteur and also the Council on its working document, which confirms everything that we have said."@en1
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