EU funding for eel management and conservation EU

DG MARE Maritime Affairs and Fisheries (European Commission) - Project Dates:
January 2024 - June 2024

Description of Project:
The European eel (Anguilla anguilla) stock is severely depleted and remains in a critical condition. According to the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES), the recruitment of eel has been at extremely low levels compared to the 1970s when the stock was considered healthy (ICES, 2023). The European eel is listed in both the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) Appendix II and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) list of endangered species as ‘critically endangered’ (CMS, 2023). The European eel was also listed in 2014 in Appendix II of the Convention of Migratory Species (CMS), as ‘having a conservation status which would significantly benefit from international co-operation’.

In order to reverse the negative trend of eel stocks, the Council has adopted the Regulation (EC) No 1100/2007 (the Eel Regulation. This regulation establishes a framework for the protection and sustainable use of the stock of European eel in Community waters (Article 1). It obliges the Member States (MS) to establish Eel Management Plans (EMPs) (Article 2) and introduce protection measures related to restocking, improvement of habitats, transportation of silver eel from inland, combatting predators and improving passage possibilities.

Initiatives for implementing the Eel Regulation were supported by the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund (EMFF) (e.g. Article 37.2 on direct restocking and Article 54 on aquaculture providing environmental services). The EMFF does not refer specifically to eel recovery or the Eel Regulation.

Likewise the European Maritime, Fisheries and Aquaculture Fund (EMFAF) does not refer specifically to eel recovery or the Eel Regulation but does supports innovative projects that contribute to the sustainable use and management of aquatic and maritime resources

Services Provided:

Poseidon provided the thematic specialist for this work. His main tasks were:

To update the 2018 review of the support under EMFF for implementing measures related to eels to include the wider biodiversity activities benefiting eel recovery;

To review the support under EMFAF for implementing measures related to eels and for wider biodiversity activities benefiting eel recovery;

To showcase the good stories/examples of how the EMFF/EMFAF was or is/will be respectively used for implementing conservation measures on eels and for the wider biodiversity purposes benefiting eel recovery and to present some CLLD work on this topic;

To assist MARE/COM in the proposed Workshop on eels under the Marine Action Plan.