The EU Commission’s scientific and technical committee (STECF) told a bass workshop in Dublin in September that a 60 percent cut in fishing mortality is needed to manage the stock in line with maximum sustainable yield (MSY) targets.
The International Council for the Exploration of the Seas (ICES) advised total landings in the southern North Sea, Channel, Irish and Celtic seas and west of Scotland should be no more than 1,155 metric tons from the combined commercial and recreational fisheries and called for a management plan for the species in EU waters.
