The Mediterranean Sea is one of the most overfished seas in the world. According to the European Environment Agency, over 65% of the fishstocks in the area are beyond safe biological limits.

In the Greek seas, small-scale coastal fishing is an activity of fundamental importance for the islands and coastal communities, supporting the locals professionally and socioeconomically, as well as sustaining their dietary needs. It is interesting to note that according to recent archeo-zoological studies, the species fished by Aegean fishermen 10,000 years ago, are almost the same as those fished by coastal fishermen today. Nowadays, coastal fisheries continue to maintain great social and economical importance in Greece, representing of 97% of the Greek fishing fleet and almost 50% of all the fish stocks.

However, each year fisheries production is declining causing destructive consequences to the local economy of the islands and coastal regions of Greece, while also reducing the potential of development of these local communities. Unfortunately, it is obvious that the current framework of fisheries management and monitoring in Greece is highly inefficient and leads to extensive decline of the fish stocks, as it does not prohibit nor monitor overfishing as well destructive and illegal fishing practices.

Factors which contribute to the downgrading of fisheries in Greece

1. Lack of conservation of protected habitats

According to EU legislation, it is forbidden to fish with towed fishing gear, in regions covered by protected habitats, such as Posidonia meadows and coralligene reefs. In connection with EU regulation 1967/2006, Greece is obliged to ensure the collection of scientific data, in order to locate and map the regions covered by these habitats. However, as in Greece there has been only minimal official mapping of Posidonia meadows and none of coralligene reefs, hence it is impossible to carry out any efficient implementation of management measures. Consequently, highly destructive fishing activities take place in these fragile habitats, mainly by trawlers, boat and purse seiners.

2. Limited number of fishing protected areas

Such a network of fishing protected areas, which Greece is obliged to have created, according to EU legislation, could conserve marine productivity, fisheries sustainability, as well as the survival of protected species. The few existing protected areas or regions, in connection to fisheries regulations, have been operational for over a decade and are not efficient.

3. Lack of protection of protected species

The Greek seas support a large number of rare and protected species: marine mammals and turtles, as well as several species of sharks, fish and invertebrates. These species have been defined as protected and/or threatened by EU legislations and by a number of international conventions, which have to be abided by; meaning that Greece is obliged to protect these species.
However in Greece today, against the current international and national legislation, some of these species are being caught (deliberately or as by-catch), retained on board, transhipped, landed, transferred and sold; and the relevant authorities are not being informed during the majority of these occasions.
 

4. Fishing and selling of undersized marine organisms

According to Greek legislation, many species are allowed to be fished much smaller in size than that defined by EU legislation. You can click here to view a table comparing the minimum allowed fishing size for selected common species of the Greek seas, as defined by Greek legislation and EU1967/2006, and the proposed sizes according to the minimum size at reproduction per species, based on relevant scientific literature.

Table 1. Minimum allowed fishing size according to Greek legislation, EU1967/2006, and proposed sizes according to the minimum size at reproduction per species

A major problem of Greek fisheries is that there is no control mechanism which ensures that the current minimum catch size criteria are being followed. In the main Greek fish markets, as well as in peripheral fish markets, large quantities of marine organisms which are smaller than the minimum catch size are being sold, including a number of protected species.

5. Inefficient operation of the Fishing Monitoring Centre

The Fishing Monitoring Centre receives, through the satellite-based Vessel Monitoring System, information on the location of fishing fleets, and in this way can control illegal fishing activities. Unfortunately this is a very expensive system which has been setup with the aim of limiting illegal and destructive fisheries operating inefficiently, but also to ensure the safety of the boats and their crews. The data collected by the systems is not cross-checked with the real data of the position of the fishing vessels, a fact which is proven by the continuous violations observed especially during the night, and/or in regions difficult to approach.

Archipelagos’ Fisheries Research and Conservation Work

1. Assessment of small scale fisheries production

The production and species composition of the retained catches from coastal small scale fisheries vessels is assessed throughout the year, in various parts of the eastern Aegean Sea.

Special emphasis is currently given to the region of SW Samos Island, where catches are recorded on a daily basis. Since this region has high fisheries productivity, Archipelagos is designing a self management scheme for a pilot fisheries protected area in close collaboration with the local authorities, fishermen and local communities. The knowledge produced from long term catch-composition studies is a necessary requirement for the development of sustainable management measures for the multispecies and multi-geared Greek small scale fisheries.
 

2. Interview based surveys

Interview based surveys of the fishing community, are carried out in various parts of the Greek seas. These surveys aim to collect information on:

• fishing techniques and practices, gear characteristics, past and current methods
• historical data of fisheries productivity and trends
• socio-economical importance of fisheries, direct and indirect for the local island communities
• data on frequency, extent and replacement cost of damages to fishing gear caused by protected marine species (which are mainly by solitary bottlenose dolphins and monk seals)
• proposals for management measures for local fishermen, aiming to reduce the impacts current fisheries practices cause to marine ecosystems and fish-stocks
 

3. Development of management- conservation schemes

Archipelagos is in collaboration with local fishermen’s associations, the Greek fishermen’s confederation, as well as the local authorities of various Aegean islands, for the development and application of fisheries management and conservation schemes.
 

4. Analysis of fish samples

Selected fish samples undergo further analysis, including otolith analysis, geometric morphometrics and ecotoxicological assessment. In all cases fish are sampled immediately post capture and have their length, weight, sex and maturity determined.

• Otolith analysis for the determination of fish age: Otoliths are calcified structures in the head, which are used as part of the balance system in bony fish. As the fish grows, new material is deposited on the surface of the otolith. The life cycle of the fish, as well as environmental changes, cause each layer to change between opaque and translucent. The result is very similar to a tree cross section. Otolith analysis provides very important information on fisheries biology, which allows effective management of fish populations.


• Fish Morphometrics: The use of morphometrics can show differences among fish of the same species, as well as differences in different species. This is achieved through the identification of a specific number of points on the fish, called landmarks. These landmarks are photographed and they are digitally analysed using image analysis software.

• Fish ecotoxicological assessment: Preliminary ecotoxicological assessment of heavy metal and organochlorine content of selected fish species from the Greek Seas in order to assess their suitability, as a commercial food in relation to the criteria set under the European Regulations on food hazards to human health. These 'Persistent Toxic Substances' (PTSs) are insoluble and/or stable compounds; they are not easily broken down and therefore remain within organism’s tissues. The concentration of PTSs increases as they ascend the food chain, resulting in detrimental health in predators, and so pose a significant human threat.