How to improve the link between the common fisheries policy and the nature restoration law proposal?
In its proposal for an EU nature restoration law, the Commission has chosen to base the adoption of marine restoration measures on existing tools of the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP), in particular articles 11 and 18 of the CFP basic regulation.
This means that each Member State having an interest in the management of fisheries activities concerned by a conservation measure must agree with that measure. This requirement could complicate the adoption of necessary restoration measures in the marine environment. Indeed, the European Court of Auditors (ECA) has pointed to difficulties in applying CFP article 11, leading to lengthy discussions and weak outcomes.
In this note, Betty Queffelec from the University of Western Brittany explores how existing procedures can be improved to ensure that the EU nature restoration law also delivers on marine ecosystems.
