ICES Journal of Marine Science: Journal du Conseil Advance Access originally published online on December 3, 2008
ICES Journal of Marine Science: Journal du Conseil 2009 66(1):155-169; doi:10.1093/icesjms/fsn193
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This article appears in the following ICES Journal of Marine Science issue: European Symposium on Marine Protected Areas as a Tool for Fisheries Management and Ecosystem Conservation [View the issue table of contents]
Natura 2000 sites and fisheries in German offshore waters
1 International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES), H. C. Andersens Boulevard 44–46 DK-1553, Denmark
2 Johann Heinrich von Thünen-Institute, Institute of Sea Fisheries, Palmaille 9 D-22767, Hamburg, Germany
3 German Federal Agency for Nature Conservation, Isle of Vilm D-18581, Putbus, Germany
4 Johann Heinrich von Thünen-Institut, Institut für Ostseefischerei, Alter Hafen 2 D-18069, Rostock, Germany
5 Cefas Lowestoft Laboratory, Pakefield Road, Lowestoft, Suffolk NR33 0HT, UK
6 Swedish Board of Fisheries, Institute of Marine Research, Box 4 SE-453 21, Lysekil, Sweden
7 DHI Water Environment Health, Agern Allé 5 DK-2970, Hørsholm, Denmark
8 Sea Fisheries Institute, ul. Ko
taja 1, PL 81-332, Gdynia, Poland
9 Netherlands Institute for Fisheries Research (IMARES), Haringkade 1, 1976 CP IJmuiden, Postbus 68, 1970 AB IJmuiden, the Netherlands
10 Canadian Science Advisory Secretariat, Department of Fisheries and Oceans 200 Kent Street, Stn 12S015, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada K1A 0E6
Correspondence to S. A. Pedersen: tel: +45 33386752; fax: +45 33934215; e-mail: sorenap{at}ices.dk
Pedersen, S. A., Fock, H., Krause, J., Pusch, C., Sell, A. L., Böttcher, U., Rogers, S. I., Sköld, M., Skov, H., Podolska, M., Piet, G. J., and Rice, J. C. 2009. Natura 2000 sites and fisheries in German offshore waters.–ICES Journal of Marine Science, 66: 155–169.The principal objective of sites selected as part of Natura 2000 is to achieve or maintain a favourable conservation status of habitats and species named in the EU Birds and Habitats directives. In the German exclusive economic zone, the habitat types protected by this legislation are sandbanks and reefs; protected species include marine mammals, seabirds, and specific migratory fish species. The ICES project Environmentally Sound Fishery Management in Protected Areas (EMPAS) aims to answer two questions: (i) To what extent do specific fishing activities significantly threaten attainment of the conservation objectives of the Natura 2000 sites? (ii) What management measures would reduce these conflicts and how effective would they be at helping to ensure the favourable condition of these sites? Assessments of fishing impacts on Natura 2000 sites require basic data on the conservation status of individual habitats and species, as well as data for fine-scale distributions of ongoing fishing activities. This paper describes and discusses the process used by the EMPAS project in developing fishery-management plans for each Natura 2000 site in German offshore waters.
Keywords: Baltic Sea, fishing effort, impact, management, marine protected area, Natura 2000, North Sea
Received 26 October 2007; accepted 1 June 2008; advance access publication 3 December 2008.