Report 2020 by the Rapporteurs of the Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference (BSPC) on developments in Integrated Maritime Policy

BSPCBaltic Sea Parliamentary ConferenceReport 2020 by the Rapporteurs of theBaltic Sea Parliamentary Conference (BSPC)on developments in Integrated Maritime PolicyThe BSPC Rapporteurs on Integrated Maritime Policy The Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference (BSPC) was established in 1991 as a forum for po-© Schwerin, 2020 litical dialogue between parliamentarians from the Baltic Sea Region. BSPC aims at raisingawareness and opinion on issues of current political interest and relevance for the Baltic SeaRegion. It promotes and drives various initiatives and efforts to support a sustainable envi-Text: Jochen Schulte and Jörgen Pettersson ronmental, social and economic development of the Baltic Sea Region. It strives at enhanc-Editing: Carmen Hohlfeld, Georg Strätker and Bodo Bahr ing the visibility of the Baltic Sea Region and its issues in a wider European context.Layout: produktionsbüro TINUS BSPC gathers parliamentarians from 11 national parliaments, 11 regional parliaments andPhotos: BSPC Secretariat 5 parliamentary organisations around the Baltic Sea. The BSPC thus constitutes a uniqueparliamentary bridge between all the EU- and non-EU countries of the Baltic Sea Region.BSPC external interfaces include parliamentary, governmental, sub-regional and other or-ganizations in the Baltic Sea Region and the Northern Dimension area, among them CBSS,HELCOM, the Northern Dimension Partnership in Health and Social Well-Being(NDPHS), the Baltic Sea Labour Forum (BSLF), the Baltic Sea States Sub-regional Coop-Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference eration (BSSSC) and the Baltic Development Forum.Bodo Bahr BSPC shall initiate and guide political activities in the region; support and strengthen dem-Secretary General ocratic institutions in the participating states; improve dialogue between governments, par-+49 171 5512557 liaments and civil society; strengthen the common identity of the Baltic Sea Region bybodo.bahr@bspcmail.net means of close co-operation between national and regional parliaments on the basis ofwww.bspc.net equality; and initiate and guide political activities in the Baltic Sea Region, endowing themwith additional democratic legitimacy and parliamentary authority.The political recommendations of the annual Parliamentary Conferences are expressed in aBSPC Secretariat Conference Resolution adopted by consensus by the Conference. The adopted ResolutionSchlossgartenallee 15 shall be submitted to the governments of the Baltic Sea Region, the CBSS and the EU, and19061 Schwerin disseminated to other relevant national, regional and local stakeholders in the Baltic Sea Re-Germany gion and its neighbourhood.Contents 3ContentsPreface .................................................................................................................................................................6List of Abbreviations ............................................................................................................................................8A – Activities of the Maritime Rapporteurs and other Important Events ..........................................................101. International Ocean Governance Forum .......................................................................................102. 12th Baltic Tourism Forum ...........................................................................................................113. International EU-workshop on environmental impact assessments and strategic environmentalassessments to help conclude a treaty on the high seas ......................................................................124. EU Ocean Day............................................................................................................................135. Our Ocean Conference ................................................................................................................136. World Ocean Day ........................................................................................................................167. European Coast Guard Functions Forum: Ten years of fruitful co-operation to address securitychallenges at the EU waters ..........................................................................................................178. Eleventh Annual Forum of the European Union Strategy for theBaltic Sea Region .........................................................................................................................189. Marine Regions Forum fills critical gap in ocean governance landscape ...........................................1810. Meeting of the Conference of Peripheral Maritime Regions Political Bureau and of the Baltic SeaCommission Executive Committee ................................................................................................1911. Shippax Ferry Conference .............................................................................................................2012. European Maritime Day 2020 Country events .............................................................................20Contents 4B – (Legislative) Developments at the EU level with regard to all BSPC members ...........................................21I. Blue Growth and overarching aspects ...................................................................................................211. Initiatives related to maritime policy in the EU Commission‘s 2020Work Programme ........................................................................................................................212. BlueInvest ...................................................................................................................................233. Blue Growth Report .....................................................................................................................244. Response to the Coronavirus (COVID-19) ....................................................................................265. The European Maritime and Fisheries Fund implementation report ...............................................336. Interregional Group Baltic Sea macro-region 2020-2025 of the European Committee of the Regions 347. Common Fisheries .......................................................................................................................348. Blue Bioeconomy .........................................................................................................................599. Consultations ..............................................................................................................................60II. Energy aspects with regard to maritime policy ......................................................................................621. Nordstream 2 and the Interregional Group in theEuropean Committee of the Regions ..............................................................................................622. Towards the energy of the future: New call for proposals forenvironmental monitoring of tidal and wave energy. .....................................................................62III. Infrastructural aspects with regard to maritime policy ........................................................................641. Maritime Spatial Planning ..........................................................................................................642. EU invests in transport projects .....................................................................................................673. EU seeks entry into force of world-wide agreement on safety of fishing vessels ...................................674. EMODnet Bathymetry ................................................................................................................685. Consultations ..............................................................................................................................69Contents 5IV. Environmental aspects with regard to maritime policy including climate protection ..............................701. Climate Protection .......................................................................................................................702. Critical status of the European eel ................................................................................................723. HELCOM Activities....................................................................................................................734. Europe needs to better protect its seas and oceans ............................................................................755. Consultations ..............................................................................................................................76Preface 6Jochen Schulte Jörgen PetterssonPrefaceThis report summarizes the developments in the Integrated Maritime Policy (IMP) field since the renewedappointment of MP Jörgen Pettersson (Åland Islands) and MP Jochen Schulte (Mecklenburg-Vorpommern)as BSPC Maritime Rapporteurs. Reflecting the great significance the Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conferenceattaches to maritime policy issues next to the present common sea-related challenges and opportunities,the report is addressing EU (legislative) developments in the field (see section B) after selectively referringto important maritime events (see section A), which have been followed by the Maritime RapporteursJochen Schulte and Jörgen Pettersson.Like in previous years, the report is focusing on Blue Growth, energy, infrastructure and environmentalaspects of maritime policy, also including ocean governance and research. One focus will be laid onautonomous ships in future years as on the improvement of air as a result on the Sulphur directive.According to the new EU Commissioner for Environment, Oceans and Fisheries, Virginijus Sinkevičius,environmental, social and economic sustainability will lead to thriving fishermen, women and coastalcommunities as well as healthy seas and oceans. This interlinkage and the growing conscience thereofPreface 7has intensely shaped the developments in integrated maritime policy displayed in this year’s report.Nevertheless, the COVID-19 pandemic represents a decisive disruption and weakens the economic pillarin this fragile triangle of ocean sustainability: Due to the Corona crisis, many thriving businesses haveseverely suffered from supply and demand disturbances, the Blue Economy making no exception.Among the five key causes of pandemics, climate change and increased human-animal contact (e.g.through trade in wildlife and entering into animal habitats) are named. In order to prevent the collapse ofthe mentioned sustainability triangle, it is necessary to further develop the maritime element of the EUGreen Deal based on scientific advice, strengthening the ecosystem-based approach towards managementof human activities at and related to the sea despite the temporary economic slowdown.Continuous efforts are necessary to preserve the Baltic Sea. As Baltic Sea Region Parliamentarians, we willcontinue observing the developments in the important field of IMP.Jochen Schulte Jörgen PetterssonMaritime Rapporteur Maritime RapporteurList of Abbreviations 8List of AbbreviationsACP African, Caribbean and Pacific countriesBALTFISH Baltic Sea Control Expert GroupBBNJ UN Treaty on the Conservation and Sustainable Use of Marine Biodiversity of Areasbeyond National JurisdictionBSAP Baltic Sea Action PlanBSR Baltic Sea RegionBSTF Baltic Sea Tourism ForumCBSS Council of Baltic Sea StatesCFP EU Common Fisheries PolicyCOP Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate ChangeCoR European Committee of the RegionsCPMR Conference of Peripheral Maritime RegionsDG MARE Directorate-General for Maritime Affairs and FisheriesEASME Executive Agency for SMEsEC EU CommissionECGFA Net European Coast Guard Functions Academy Network forEuropean Sectorial QualificationsECGFF European Coast Guard Functions ForumEDA European Defence AgencyEFCA European Fisheries Control AgencyEFSI European Fund for Strategic InvestmentsEIA Environmental Impact AssessmentEMFF European Maritime and Fisheries FundEMSA European Maritime Safety AgencyESIF European Structural and Investment FundsEUMOFA European Market Observatory for Fisheries and Aquaculture ProductsEUROJUST European Union Agency for Criminal Justice CooperationEUSBSR European Union Strategy for the Baltic Sea RegionList of Abbreviations 9FAO UN Food and Agriculture OrganizationFFH Flora-Fauna-Habitat DirectiveFrontex European Border and Coast Guard AgencyGHG Greenhouse gasHOLAS II HELCOM Second Holistic Assessment of the Ecosystem Health of the Baltic SeaICES International Council on the Exploration of the SeasIMO International Maritime OrganizationIMP Integrated Maritime PolicyInterpol International Criminal PoliceIOC-UNESCO UNESCO’s Intergovernmental Oceanographic CommissionIOG International Ocean GovernanceIPCC Intergovernmental Panel on Climate ChangeJDPs Joint Deployment PlansLNG Liquefied Natural GasMEPC IMO Marine Environment Protection CommitteeMRV Monitoring, Reporting and Verification of CO emissions2MS EU member statesMSFD EU Marine Strategy Framework DirectiveMSP Maritime Spatial PlanningMSY Maximum Sustainable YieldNGOs Non-governmental organisationsNOx Nitrogen oxidesSatCen European Satellite CentreSDGs UN Sustainable Development GoalsSEA Strategic Environmental AssessmentSMEs Small and medium-sized enterprisesSOx Sulphur oxidesTAC Total allowable catchesUNCLOS United Nations Convention on the Law of the SeaA – Activities of the Maritime Rapporteurs and other Important Events 10A – Activities of the Maritime Rapporteurs and otherImportant EventsCOVID-19 not only led to a postponement of many popular maritime events. Next to imposing substan-tial economic impacts, which are described below, it stalled negotiations on important maritime issues.For instance on the Treaty on the Conservation and Sustainable Use of Marine Biodiversity of Areas Be-yond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ): The fourth round of negotiations, tasked to create the internationallegally binding instrument under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), planned forMarch 2020, was postponed.Yet, there have been and will be some online conferences, like the International Ocean Governance Fo-rum, the 13th Baltic Tourism Forum, the EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region (EUSBSR) forum and sev-eral European Maritime Day country events.1. International Ocean Governance ForumBringing together actors, stakeholders and experts within and beyond Europe for interactive dialogues onocean challenges and governance solutions, the International Ocean Governance (IOG) Forum supportsfollow-up and further development of the EU’s IOG agenda. The IOG forum was launched with ahigh-level event on April 22, 2020, followed by thematic working groups. The next meeting of the forumwill take place in Brussels, 14-16 December 2020.The three thematic working groups were launched with a virtual event on 22-24 April 2020.They are focussing on the IOG framework, a sustainable blue economy and strengthening ocean research.During a first webinar on “Improving the international ocean governance framework” on 22 April 2020,video messages by EU Commissioner Sinkevicius and UN Special Envoy for the Oceans, Peter Thomsonaddressed the future UN high-seas conservation treaty (BBNJ), the post-2020 Biodiversity frameworkand the COVID-19 Blue-green Recovery.A – Activities of the Maritime Rapporteurs and other Important Events 11The necessity was underlined to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in order to reverse the declineof the oceans’ health, and to protect oceans also beyond countries’ territorial waters against overfishingand detrimental environmental effects of unregulated deep-sea mining.2. 12th Baltic Tourism ForumThe 12th Baltic Sea Tourism Forum (BSTF) took place on 13 November 2019 in Brussels.The BSTF aims to enhance the Baltic Sea’s standing as a tourist destination and to complement the Bal-tic Sea states’ and regions’ tourism strategies in a meaningful way. With the participation of the EuropeanUnion, the forum gathered stakeholders from the Baltic Sea region (BSR) and representatives from insti-tutions based at Brussels. Within the context of international cooperation, successful examples from theBaltic Sea Region were presented and suggestions made for strategic and innovative approaches, also inlight of the Multiannual Financial Framework 2021-2027. Keynotes on sustainability and the future oftourism also formed a part of the agenda.Under the motto SHARE | INSPIRE | CREATE the forum underlined the reasons for cooperation be-yond national borders in a macro-regional context.The first session concentrated on the potentials and challenges of cross-border work by focusing on theoverarching macro-regional strategies as well as on examples of interregional project initiatives. The ex-change on experiences and future needs helped to clarify commonalities as well as emphasising the advan-tages of sustainable cooperation at macro-regional level.A more detailed insight on innovative approaches was given during the second session. The meeting re-flected the fact that BSR tourism market data and trends as well as international product and service de-velopment can mean long-term benefits for the tourism sector in the BSR and should be considered as animperative when positioning the tourism industry at international level.With regard to the new multiannual financial framework of the EU for the period 2021-2027, the third ses-sion was dedicated to create perspectives: The new EU funding period not only affects international coopera-tion, influencing the funds available within programmes such as Interreg, but also defines EU policy priorities.A – Activities of the Maritime Rapporteurs and other Important Events 12In addition, a B2B Café was organised at the sidelines of the Forum. Funding programmes, project initi-atives and interested organizations had the opportunity to present themselves with a stand during theconference day. Together with a new designed BSTF Web App, specifically developed for smart match-making, the B2B Café allowed all participants to interact.The 13th Baltic Sea Tourism Forum will be organised 11-13 November 2020 in Palanga (Lithuania).3. International EU-workshop on environmental impact assessments andstrategic environmental assessments to help conclude a treaty on the high seasThe European Commission organised an international workshop on environmental impact assessments(EIAs) and strategic environmental assessments (SEAs) in areas beyond national jurisdiction in Brusselson 28 and 29 January 2020. The event was organised in the context of ongoing negotiations on a new le-gally binding instrument on the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity of areasbeyond national jurisdiction (BBNJ) under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UN-CLOS).At the start of the workshop, Virginijus Sinkevičius, European Commissioner for Environment, Oceansand Fisheries, said: “Let’s seize the opportunity this year for concluding a new Treaty that will protect the highseas, half of our planet.”The workshop contributed to the intersessional work of the BBNJ negotiations by bringing together over100 participants representing governments, international institutions, business, civil society and scienceto discuss the EIA chapter of the future Treaty. This provided a unique opportunity for more than 30 UNdelegations active in the negotiations and coming from different regions of the world to discuss environ-mental impact assessments, strategic environmental assessments and key outstanding issues with expertsand other relevant stakeholders. The interactive panel sessions also explored potential solutions to someof these issues by analysing concrete proposals for the future Treaty.The fourth session of the BBNJ negotiations was initially set to take place at the UN from 23 March to 3April 2020, but was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.A – Activities of the Maritime Rapporteurs and other Important Events 134. EU Ocean DayThe European Commission organised an ‘EU Ocean Day’ on 7 December 2019 during the Conference ofthe Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change “COP 25”, which was taking place inMadrid between 2 and 13 December 2019 and which was attended by Virginijus Sinkevičius, EuropeanCommissioner for Environment, Oceans and Fisheries. Read more about marine climate protection insection B.IV.1 (Environmental aspects).5. Our Ocean ConferenceOn 7-8 December 2020, the Our Ocean Conference will take place in Palau. Its focus lies on six areas ofaction (marine pollution, marine protected areas, climate change, sustainable blue economies, sustainablefisheries, and maritime security), on convening partners from across the globe to identify solutions tomanage marine resources, increasing the ocean’s resilience to climate change and safeguarding its healthfor generations to come.During last year’s conference which took place in Oslo on 23-24 October, the European Union an-nounced 22 new commitments for better governance of the oceans. In addition, the EU was also launch-ing “The Ocean Tracker” (https://ourocean2019.no/commitments/), an interactive map to follow theover 10 billion euros commitments already made by governments, businesses and NGOs.Commissioner for International Cooperation and Development, Neven Mimica, said: “In our future part-nership with ACP [African, Caribbean and Pacific] countries, we will continue acting as an international driv-ing force by championing sustainable management of marine resources, while fostering blue economy and op-portunities to improve people’s lives”.These EU commitments are actions to strengthen ocean governance, in particular with regard to theachievement of the 2030 Agenda and more specifically, the Sustainable Development Goal 14: Conserveand sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development. The EU pledgesinclude projects to tackle plastic pollution, make blue economy more sustainable and improve researchand maritime surveillance.A – Activities of the Maritime Rapporteurs and other Important Events 14The Ocean tracker, itself a commitment made in 2017, when the EU hosted the Our Ocean in Malta, willmake sure that the progress of all pledges is clear to see.For its part, the EU has made 77 commitments since the launch of Our Ocean conferences in 2014. Al-most 80% of all EU commitments have been or are close to being delivered, including 50% of the an-nouncements made last year alone.22 new commitments for Our Ocean worth almost €540 millionThe 22 EU commitments consist of concrete and targeted action with a total budget of almost €540 mil-lion to tackle key ocean challenges such as the impact of climate change, strengthen our knowledge base,drive innovation and to promote the development of the sustainable blue economy within and beyondEurope.Supporting ocean research: Under Horizon 2020, the EUs’ research and innovation program, €250 millionwill be dedicated to improve our understanding and boost new technologies for sustainable fisheries, tack-ling marine pollution, decarbonising shipping and promoting blue renewable energy.Fighting marine pollution: The European Commission will also contribute to the fight against marine pol-lution by promoting “green shipping”. Ships, which reduce the amount of waste produced on board orhandle the waste in an otherwise sustainable manner, will be rewarded for these efforts through a reduc-tion of the waste fee that they have to pay when calling in an EU port.Boosting the blue economy and innovation: more than €100 million will be dedicated to promote the fur-ther development of a sustainable blue economy in Europe. This includes investment in companies thatcontribute to lowering carbon emissions, strengthening the circular economy and ecosystem conserva-tion.Joining forces worldwide for more results: Action at home for a sustainable blue economy and better oceangovernance are matched by promoting its development abroad. At the Our Ocean conference, the EUwill sign a new partnership program to provide €40 million for supporting sustainable fisheries and aqua-culture value chains in Africa, the Caribbean and the Pacific (ACP) countries.A – Activities of the Maritime Rapporteurs and other Important Events 15Understanding and adapting to climate change: €12.8 million will be dedicated to the Copernicus programon sea ice and cryosphere1 climate monitoring to better understand climate change effects in the Arcticand Antarctic. Furthermore, the EU will contribute €9.9 million to the Joint Pacific Initiative on Biodi-versity, Climate Change and Resilience launched by France to increase the capacities of 19 Pacific statesand territories to adapt to the impact of climate change and other stressors and to protect and enhance bi-odiversity.Background:Every year, the Our Ocean conference takes place attracting tangible commitments from governments,companies and NGOs (non-governmental organisations). Previous conferences, hosted by the govern-ments of Indonesia (2018), the EU (2017), the United States (2014, 2016) and Chile (2015), have seena wide range of commitments and billions of euros pledged. The 2017 Our Ocean conference hosted bythe EU in Malta was a game-changer, mobilising funding and ocean action at an unprecedented scale.The commitments are only one of the ways by which the European Commission works to accelerate theshift towards circular economy and to become a zero carbon economy by 2050. It adopted the first-ever Eu-rope-wide strategy on plastics and new EU-wide rules targeting the 10 single-use plastic products mostoften found on Europe›s beaches and seas, as well as lost and abandoned fishing gear. This was accompa-nied by the awareness-raising campaign “Ready to change” actively supported by many aquariums.Oceans are under severe pressure and climate change is aggravating the situation. The IntergovernmentalPanel on Climate Change (IPCC) Special Report on the impact of climate change on oceans and the cry-osphere issued on 25 September 2019 made clear that oceans can only remain healthy if we limit globalwarming to 1.5°C. The EU therefore continues to urge for an ambitious implementation of the Paris Agreementon climate change and is taking action to address the link between climate change and the oceans through itsInternational Ocean Governance strategy.Considering the important number of islands and coastal states in the partnership between the EU and79 ACP countries, ocean related challenges are at the heart of the current negotiations for a future agree-ment between the EU and ACP countries (so-called post-Cotonou negotiations). As part of these negoti-ations, the EU and ACP countries have recently agreed to step up their cooperation on the international1 Cryosphere: the portion of the Earth’s water frozen in ice caps, glaciers, and sea ice.A – Activities of the Maritime Rapporteurs and other Important Events 16scene, including on oceans’ governance and preservation. This joint approach, spanning across many con-tinents, carries significant weight as together EU and ACP countries account for more than half of UNmembership.6. World Ocean DayOn Monday 8 June - World Ocean Day - the Virtual Ocean Literacy Summit brought together the EU,UNESCO’s Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC-UNESCO) and other internationalpartners to discuss the role of ocean literacy in transforming knowledge into action, in the context of theUN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development.During the summit, Virginijus Sinkevičius, European Commissioner for Environment, Oceans and Fish-eries, announced the creation of the “EU4Ocean” coalition. The EU4Ocean initiative will amplifiy ongo-ing efforts regarding ocean literacy by connecting organisations, projects and people. It is a call for actionto all citizens to engage for more sustainable oceans.According to EU Commissioner Sinkevičius, this years World Ocean Day was about the 2030 ambitionto achieve 30% marine protected areas. The EU Commission had adopted a new 2030 biodiversity strat-egy in May 2020 and is supporting the UN decade of ocean science starting in 2021.Ocean Literacy is “the understanding of human influence on the ocean and the ocean’s influence on peo-ple”. The initiative’s objectives are to increase awareness of the state of the ocean and provide tools and ap-proaches that can transform ocean knowledge into actions promoting ocean sustainability.With the aim of involving the European Youth, a Youth4Ocean Forum will be establiched, next to a net-work of “blue schools”, which brings the ocean into the classroom (primary and secondary, technical andvocational schools). What is more, a EU4Ocean platform will be created, involving also non-EU coun-tries. The first EU4Ocean event is scheduled for September 2020.A – Activities of the Maritime Rapporteurs and other Important Events 177. European Coast Guard Functions Forum: Ten years of fruitful co-operationto address security challenges at the EU watersEuropean peace and prosperity depends on safe, secure and clean seas and oceans. But adequate maritimesecurity requires excellent cooperation between coastguard authorities, agencies and other bodies at re-gional, national or European level.For this purpose, the European Coast Guard Functions Forum (ECGFF) was created ten years ago, withthe support of the European Comission. Bringing together over 30 national coastguard authorities fromEU countries and associated Schengen countries, it works on collaborative issues such as multi-agency,multinational operations and capacity-building among coast guard academies.For its 10th anniversary meeting on 12-15 November, the ECGFF turned to Venice. Organised by the Ital-ian Coast Guard, the conference hosted the heads of coast guards and navies from 21 EU member states.The EU was represented by the Commission and relevant EU agencies and bodies like the European Mari-time Safety Agency (EMSA), the European Fisheries Control Agency (EFCA), the European Border andCoast Guard Agency (FRONTEX), the European Defence Agency (EDA), the European Satellite Centre(SatCen) and the International Criminal Police (Interpol). Speakers agreed that cooperation between the au-thorities performing coast-guard functions leads to better maritime security. Not only does it improve situ-ational awareness, it helps anticipate threats and risks and maximizes efficiency of operations at sea.The European Commission praised the Forum for bringing together civil and military coast guard author-ities across Europe, contributing directly to the execution of the EU maritime security strategy actionplan. Also the other speakers agreed that the ECGFF has helped taking cooperation to the next level, par-ticularly in the last two years. Maritime security responsibilities are becoming more complementary at na-tional and European level, and silos are being overcome. A special focus of the discussions has been puton the coast guards cooperation handbook and the multipurpose maritime operations as essential ele-ments to consolidate future cooperation.Other topics included the outcomes of the ECGFF projects (European Coast Guard Functions AcademyNetwork for European Sectorial Qualifications – training Net (ECGFA Net) and Exchange programme),funded by the Commission and the possibility of continuation under the agencies framework.The chair of the Forum for 2020 has been handed over to the Secretariat General de la Mer, France.A – Activities of the Maritime Rapporteurs and other Important Events 188. Eleventh Annual Forum of the European Union Strategy for theBaltic Sea RegionThe Eleventh Forum of the EUSBSR will, due to COVID-19 outbreak, be organised online on 20 Octo-ber 2020. The City of Turku and the Council of the Baltic Sea States (CBSS), in collaboration with theMinistry for Foreign Affairs of Finland are the main organisers of the event. The conference title is „To-wards a Decade of innovation and sustainability“.In January 2020, within the framework of the EUSBSR, a new initiative for increased networking of ac-tors in the realm of Blue Growth was presented (see section B.I.8 Blue Bioeconomy).9. Marine Regions Forum fills critical gap in ocean governance landscapeOn 30 September 2019, the European Commission and Germany have kicked off the first Marine Re-gions Forum. Gathering experts from different disciplines, the Forum will bring the much-needed region-al perspective into international ocean governance and foster cross-border and interdisciplinary coopera-tion to achieve healthy, safe and productive seas.In the EU, regional ocean governance has become a central element of ocean policy making, be it for re-source management, environmental protection or sustainable economic development. But in global dis-cussions about the health and future of our ocean, the regional level is still underrepresented, despite thefact that coordination of national strategies and actions across borders is indispensable in the light of im-plementation of global commitments.That is why, at the Our Ocean Conference in Malta, the EU and Germany have committed to establisha Marine Regions Forum. Suiting the action to the word, they were hosting the first edition of this forumfrom 30 September to 2 October 2019 in Berlin.The Marine Regions Forum brings ocean actors and stakeholders together outside formal negotiationsand the typical silo-based processes. Given the interconnected nature of many natural and societal chal-lenges, such isolated processes are inadequate to deliver the UN’s Agenda 2030, including SDG 14 onLife Below Water.A – Activities of the Maritime Rapporteurs and other Important Events 19In Berlin, 200 participants exchanged experiences and discussed common challenges as they tried to devel-op new cross-sectoral solutions to deliver Sustainable Development Goal 14. Other parts of the UN’s Agen-da 2030 were also on their radar, as most natural and societal systems are intrinsically interconnected.The first Marine Regions Forum covered all major ocean governance dilemmas, including ecosystem-basedmanagement, climate change mitigation and adaption as well as protection of marine biodiversity. In ad-dition, the blue economy, for example marine tourism, was on the agenda (see link: https://www.prog-ocean.org/marine-regions-forum/conference-2019/program/).10. Meeting of the Conference of Peripheral Maritime Regions Political Bureauand of the Baltic Sea Commission Executive CommitteeThe meeting of the Conference of Peripheral Maritime Regions (CPMR) Political Bureau, planned to beheld on 19 March 2020 in Cornwall, UK, has been cancelled.On 20 January 2020, the CPMR Baltic Sea Commission (BSC) Executive Committee met in Oulu, Fin-land. The Finnish Minister for European Affairs, Tytti Tuppurainen led EU talks during the Finnish EUPresidency with MS over its budget for the years 2021-2027. She opened the meeting saying that sheshared the Baltic Sea Commission’s view that regions have a pivotal and important role to play in the Eu-ropean Cooperation.In her speech Minister Tuppurainen gave an overview of the Finnish EU Presidency and touched uponspecific issues regarding the Baltic Sea and the Arctic. The Finnish EU Presidency created contacts withthe new European Commission, and the new European Parliament Representatives from Podladskie,Stockholm, Ostrobothnia and the Baltic Sea Working Groups contributed to the discussions, whichmainly focused on the Green Deal, the Just Transition Mechanism, Accessibility and a shift towards moresustainable transport.During the Executive Committee in Oulu, there was a vivid discussion on how best to ensure a regionalpolitical involvement in defining the Green Deal’s instruments and policies. This is a discussion that theExecutive Committee foresaw during the spring for all its Working Groups to further develop.A – Activities of the Maritime Rapporteurs and other Important Events 2011. Shippax Ferry ConferenceThe Shippax Ferry Conference 2020 will take place on board of the PEARL SEAWAYS, sailing betweenCopenhagen-Oslo-Copenhagen from 30 September to 2 October 2020.12. European Maritime Day 2020 Country eventsAlthough the European Maritime Day (EMD) 2020 Conference which was planned to be held in Cork,Ireland on 20 May 2020, had to be cancelled due to the coronavirus crisis and the related social distanc-ing measures, country partners managed to organise many open air or virtual events.This year, many of the 200 initially registered EMD “In My Country” events, covering all the EU sea ba-sins, took place in a virtual format. Other EMD in my Country activities were taking place in open air,like eco-tours, excursions in coastal areas, beach-cleaning activities, etc.B – (Legislative) Developments at the EU level with regard to all BSPC members 21B – (Legislative) Developments at the EU level withregard to all BSPC membersI. Blue Growth and overarching aspects1. Initiatives related to maritime policy in the EU Commission‘s 2020Work ProgrammeWithin its Work Programme 2020, the EU Commission (EC) named the initiative “FuelEU Maritime – agreen European maritime space: Greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) from ships are not included in the 2015Paris Agreement on climate. In 2018, the IMO adopted an Initial GHG Strategy for international shipping,seeking to reduce GHG emissions from international shipping and phase them out as soon as possible in thiscentury. The aim is to reduce average carbon intensity (CO2 per tonne-mile) by at least 40% by 2030 andby 70 % in 2050, as well as to cut total emissions by at least 50% by 2050, compared to 2008.The IMO 2030 reduction target can be met with available technology, by a mix of short- and mid-termmeasures, including operational measures, such as lower speeds, improvements in operational efficiencythrough data analytics, limited use of low-carbon fuels, and energy efficient designs. The Initial strategyincludes a list of candidate short-, mid- and long-term measures, to be agreed in the IMO Marine Envi-ronment Protection Committee (MEPC) before 2023, between 2023 and 2030, and after 2030.To meet the 2050 demands, however, shipping has to undergo a global transition to alternative fuels andenergy sources. All alternative fuels known today have certain limitations, many solutions are not matureyet and there is no obvious ‘one-fuel’ choice for the global fleet. The industry points out that with the cur-rent state of IMO regulation, the 2050 targets will not be met.Given the availability and prices of alternative fuels, the fuel solution for a vast part of international ship-ping for the immediate future remains a choice between a variety of fuel oils or liquefied natural gas(LNG). Currently, LNG is the cleanest fossil fuel available at scale. It eliminates most Sulphur oxides(SOx) and reduces Nitrogen oxides (NOx) emissions, helping to improve air quality in ports. RunningB – (Legislative) Developments at the EU level with regard to all BSPC members 22on LNG requires important investments both into the ship and into the port bunkering infrastructure.However, LNG, which is mostly methane, cannot much contribute to shipping’s decarbonisation. Whenrisks of leakages along its life-cycle are factored in, GHG emissions from LNG-run ships can be worse thanthose from ships running on conventional marine fuels.Introducing alternative fuels in shipping is linked to a number of challenges. The energy content of thefuel is in many alternative fuels lower that of oil-based fuels, therefore the ship needs bigger fuel tanks forsimilar operating profiles. Many alternative fuels have a low flashpoint (below 60 degrees Celsius), mean-ing that different safety aspects linked to storage and on-board use need to be addressed with specific riskmitigation measures. Bunkering infrastructure requires large investment.The EU Commission President, Ursula von der Leyen, in her December 2019 mission letter to AdinaValean, Commissioner for Transport, asked her to play a leading role in international forums, such as theIMO, and to contribute to the EU zero-pollution ambition by focusing on mitigating the impact of trans-port on climate and natural environment.In the European Green Deal Communication, the EU Commission (EC) affirms its focus on the produc-tion and deployment of sustainable alternative transport fuels for the different transport modes. In paral-lel, the EC wants to review the Alternative fuels infrastructure directive and the Energy taxation directiveand propose to extend the European emissions trading to the maritime sector.In its resolution on the European Green Deal, the European Parliament called for measures to move awayfrom the use of heavy fuel oil and for urgent investments in research into new technologies to decarbon-ise the shipping sector, and in the development of zero-emission and green ships.In its 2018 resolution on the deployment of infrastructure for alternative fuels, the Parliament called onthe EC to support the decarbonisation of the maritime and shipping sector with a clear focus on innova-tion, digitisation and adaptation of ports and ships. It also supported the deployment of shore-side ener-gy supply at both inland and maritime ports.On 29 January 2020, the EC’s new work programme was published. Under the first priority - ‘a Europe-an Green Deal’, the EC announced its intention to launch a legislative proposal on maritime fuels. Ac-cording to the work programme, the proposal should be adopted in the fourth quarter of 2020 and in-clude an impact assessment. This timing was confirmed in the Adjusted Commission Work Programme2020 published on 27 May 2020.B – (Legislative) Developments at the EU level with regard to all BSPC members 23The EU Commission also planned a revision of the marketing standards Regulation applicable to fishery andaquaculture products in the EU (first quarter of 2021). This revision aims to simplify the legal set-up: one(EU) Regulation will replace three regulations currently covering also aquaculture products, transparencyand consumer information.2. BlueInvestIn February 2020, the EU Commission, together with the European Investment Fund, has establishedthe BlueInvest fund for the Blue Economy2, providing 75 million euros for economic activities related tooceans and coasts and focussing on start-ups and joung enterprisesThe BlueInvest fund provides financing to underlying equity funds that strategically target and supportthe innovative blue economy. This sector can play an important role in the transformation to a car-bon-neutral economy by 2050, an ambition announced in the European Green Deal. The new pro-gramme is backed by the European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI), the financial pillar of the In-vestment Plan for Europe.The new fund is complemented by the European Commission‘s BlueInvest platform, which supports in-vestment readiness and access to finance for early-stage businesses, small and medium-sized enterprises(SMEs) and scale-ups. Through the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund (EMFF), the Commissionalso funds an additional €40 million grant scheme, to help blue economy SMEs with developing andbringing to market new innovative and sustainable products, technologies and services.Background:BlueInvest is a European Commission initiative that aims to improve access to finance and investmentreadiness for start-ups, early-stage businesses and SMEs active in the Blue Economy. Its features include2 Definition Blue Economy: The Blue Economy includes economic activities related to oceans, seas and coasts. It ranges from companies in the marine environmentto land-based businesses producing goods or services that contribute to the maritime economy. The Blue Economy harbours many promising early-stage venturesand companies – often emanating from EU-funded R&D programmes. These companies develop solutions for renewable energy, sustainable seafood, blue biotech-nology, maritime IT and much more.B – (Legislative) Developments at the EU level with regard to all BSPC members 24an online community, investment readiness assistance for companies, investor engagement, events, anacademy and a projects pipeline.On 25 November 2019, the Executive Agency for SMEs (EASME) organised an information day on the“Blue Economy Window” call with a total budget of €22.5 million. (It can be watched online here:https://webcast.ec.europa.eu/easme-emff-information-day-2019)The 2019 blue economy call was presented in a series of presentations organised by EASME and the Di-rectorate General for Maritime Affairs and Fisheries of the European Commission (DG MARE). Moreinformation about this call can be found in the amendment to the EMFF work programme, see: https://ec.europa.eu/fisheries/sites/fisheries/files/c2019-7127-annex_en.pdfUnder the 2019 call, organisations could receive between €700,000 and €2,500,000 for their projects.Any for-profit SME based in the EU (single participant or a member of a consortium) could apply.The Information Day was also an opportunity take advantage of the match-making session, meet poten-tial partners, stakeholders or discuss projects directly with EASME project advisors.WSENSE, an EMFF funded company, presented their successful Archeosub project and shared their ex-perience on how to make the most of EU funding.3. Blue Growth ReportThe European Commission’s Blue Growth Report published on 11 June 2020 highlights the role of thefuture Horizon Europe Programme in deploying solutions for the reduction of marine pollution includ-ing plastics, mitigation of climate change in the ocean, sustainable use and management of ocean resourc-es, development of new materials like biodegradable plastic substitutes, new feed and food systems, coast-al and maritime spatial planning and ocean governance.According to the report’s findings, the EU Blue Economy directly employed close to five million people(+11.6%) and generated around €750 billion in turnover and €218 billion in gross value added in 2018.B – (Legislative) Developments at the EU level with regard to all BSPC members 25Although sectors such as coastal and marine tourism, as well as fisheries and aquaculture are severely af-fected by the coronavirus pandemic, the blue economy as a whole presents a huge potential in terms of itscontribution to a green recovery. In addition, specially tailored support packages have been created forblue economy sectors.While the marine environment is typically associated with traditional activities such as fishing or trans-port, it houses an increasing number of emerging, innovative sectors including marine renewable energy.The EU, world leader in ocean energy technology, is on track to produce up to 35% of its electricity fromoffshore sources by 2050.For the first time, the EU Commission’s Blue Growth report addresses the environmental dimension ofthe blue economy in detail. With a decrease of 29% of CO2 per unit of gross value added between 2009and 2017, fisheries and aquaculture growth is firmly decoupled from greenhouse gas production. Moreo-ver, the report stresses the correlation between sustainable fishing and positive economic performance.Greening is also ongoing in other sectors. Fuelled by the International Maritime Organisation’s 2020 sul-phur cap, maritime transport is looking increasingly towards less carbon-intensive energy sources. In ad-dition, a network of “green ports” is reducing the ecological footprint of these economically importanthubs between the ocean and the mainland.The report also looks at the economic value of several ecosystem services provided by the ocean, includ-ing habitats for marine life, carbon sequestration, and processes that influence climate change and biodi-versity.The mentioned growth in Blue jobs was mainly driven by the coastal tourism sector. Jobs in the offshorewind energy sector have multiplied nine-fold in less than 10 years.These figures illustrate that the EU Blue Economy has overcome the devastating impact of the economicand financial crisis of 2008. As the current coronavirus crisis has an impact on all economic sectors, in-cluding the blue economy, the European Commission has taken strong measures early on to protect theEU economy, including the various sectors of the blue economy.The EU supports the blue economy through various instruments. EFSI has invested over €1.4 billion inoffshore wind projects and offered substantial support to other parts of the blue economy, including portdevelopment and clean shipping.B – (Legislative) Developments at the EU level with regard to all BSPC members 26The BlueInvest Platform of the European Commission and the European Investment Fund have provid-ed grants of €22 million in 2019 and €20 million in 2020, to innovative, starting blue economy entrepre-neurs. Also the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development is financing a series of blue econo-my projects.4. Response to the Coronavirus (COVID-19)Shipping and shipbuilding in the Baltic SeaThe situation during the Corona pandemic proved difficult for the Blue Economy, also including cruiseshipping, shipyards and suppliers.For some years to come, the demand of new ships of all kinds will be very low. Therefore, the RegionalGovernment of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern has negotiated a recovery package for shipyards in July 2020:175 million euros of pledged bank deposits have been released, and in September 2020 further 570 mil-lion euros out of the economic stabilisation fund could become available.Considering that the construction of complex ships is a strength of Europe, modern technologies for driv-ing power may help to find a way out of the crisis. Economically and ecologically.In his speech during the 29th BSPC meeting, which took place online on 24 August 2020, MP Jörgen Pet-tersson addressed the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic in respect of Blue Growth, especially theBaltic shipping industry:“Up to March this year, the shipping industry was mainly developing according to plan. Cruise industrywas constantly increasing and only in Europe we had over two million people working directly and indi-rectly in the maritime businesses. The contribution to the total GDP was calculated to 150 billion euro.There were, of course challenges, such as gender equality, social safety, sustainability, greenhouse-gases andso on, but at the end of the day everyone realized, the shipping industry is needed in order to provide anincreased population with food, clothes, products, leisure, transport, etcetera.B – (Legislative) Developments at the EU level with regard to all BSPC members 27Up to that point, the EU-controlled fleet was larger than ever but still smaller than before compared withthe rest of the world. The demand for shipping services had risen more than European shipowners couldprovide, which lead us to a business opportunity. Still shipping was one of the major employers in Europeand the world. Besides the direct effects in the industry, there were indirect impacts like purchases of in-puts from suppliers and suppliers own supply chains. Furthermore, there were induced impacts like con-sumer spending of those employed in the shipping industry and its supply chains like food and beverag-es, recreation, clothing, household goods and so on. The total impact created an industry that literally in-fluenced everything we consume in our daily lives.B – (Legislative) Developments at the EU level with regard to all BSPC members 28But in the course of the COVID-19 pandemic, people were forced to stay inside and thereby to stop con-suming, which had huge impact on the maritime industry. Except for tankers, the industry has been suf-fering from significant immediate losses. So far, it has been a bad crisis, but it is probably far from over.The situation for ferries, car carriers, offshore services vessels next to general cargo and containers is ex-pected to deteriorate, and the cruise industry has disappeared. At the beginning of 2020, the world fleetof cruiseships, including 108 in order, consisted of 474 ships worth 170 billion dollars. The same fleet istoday expected to be worth 32 billion less. The older units are expected to have fallen 90 per cent andmore. It is mayhem in the cruise-industry, which, up to this year, had been increasing steadily, every year.Behind all these figures there are also humans unable to travel home to their families, being stuck oncruise ships. And, of course, all those who no longer have a job to attend. We are facing massive job loss-es hence the crisis. It seems impossible to come up with advice and recommendations how shipping willsurvive. For the moment, the uncertainty is larger than everything else, and Phil Hogan [the former Com-missioner for Trade in the European Commission, whose same career even ended in the meantime be-cause of a breach of COVID-19 rules in Ireland], said, our world was reshaping and that we had to adapt.In order to keep a European shipping industry, we have to make sure our shipowners will stay competi-tive and ambitious also in the future.B – (Legislative) Developments at the EU level with regard to all BSPC members 29Having in mind all the challenges that rammed the industry, it is also important to remember the heroicdeed seafarers and shipowners performed during the first months of the pandemic. Risking their ownlives, they continued to transport the goods we, who stayed in our homes, needed – every day. We couldcontinue to buy gas, eat bananas, watch TV and work in Teams because the supply chain continued towork and deliver. That is something all in the BSPC should acknowledge, praise and realise. Sailors madeunbelievable efforts, being unable to return to home.It is far from over, but the BSPC has to focus on the future and make sure it is ready for the day the virusis beaten. ECSA, the European Community Shipowners’ Association, made the following requests in or-der to grow:• focus on building a resilient and sustainable EU economy after the coronavirus and reform of theWorld Trade Organization in order to create global trade opportunities for businesses and inparticular small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs)• handle global challenges such as climate change, sustainable development and the digital transition• improve the level playing field and protect EU businesses and citizens• provide a well-functioning maritime structure.”B – (Legislative) Developments at the EU level with regard to all BSPC members 30EU topped up fisheries fund by €500 million to help recovery COVID-19 crisisVirginijus Sinkevičius, European Commissioner for Environment, Oceans and Fisheries, in the begin-ning of June 2020 explained the EC’s decision to increase the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund(EMFF) with €500 million: The additional funding was part of the Recovery Package and followed earli-er EU support measures described below to alleviate the immediate socio-economic impact on the sector.The EU Commission intended to work closely with EU countries to ensure that the additional fundingcontributes to a swift recovery, in line with the European Green Deal and the ambitions of the commonfisheries policy (CFP).For many coastal communities, who strongly rely on fisheries for their livelihoods, the social-economicimpact of the coronavirus crisis was – and still is – dramatic. Businesses suffered severe losses because ofthe lockdown and the disruption of the European seafood market. With measures including support fortemporary cessation, storage aid and temporary state aid3, the EC had swiftly taken actions. After eco-nomic activity has slowly been picking up again, it moved to a second phase of action to support the re-covery. At the end of May, the Commission presented the Recovery Instrument, consisting of new financ-ing raised on the financial markets (Next Generation EU) as well as a reinforced long-term budget for2021-2027. As part of the proposal, the EMFF budget was strengthened with an additional €500 million.This was an increase of more than 8% compared to the budget initially proposed for the EMFF in 2018.This additional money was supposed to feed into Member States’ programmes for 2021-2024, frontload-ing financial support in the crucial first years of recovery. The EU members have to channel this invest-ment to the objectives of the European recovery plan and work closely with the EU Commission (EC)during the preparation of the future generation of EMFF programmes.With the recovery plan, the EC planned to repair the short-term damage from the crisis by investing in a sus-tainable, inclusive and fair future for Europe. In this respect, investment supported by the EMFF shouldstrengthen the resilience of the sector and contribute to the European Green Deal, including the 2030 Biodi-versity and the Farm to Fork strategies, as well as the circular economy. Moreover, all EMFF funding shouldcontinue to promote the achievement of the economic, social and environmental objectives of the CFP.3 The revised EU state aid rules allow EU member states to provide temporary relief to economic operators hit by the crisis. The new rules include a large increaseof the maximum amount of de minimis aid per undertaking, from currently € 30,000 to € 120,000, also benefitting companies in the wider blue economy –from biotech to tourism.B – (Legislative) Developments at the EU level with regard to all BSPC members 31In April 2020, the EU had adopted the emergency aid for fisheries and aquaculture. Among others, thedemand for seafood had experienced a dramatic slump.With fishers forced to stay in port and fish farmers facing the prospect of having to dispose of unusedproducts, temporary and targeted measures served to provide immediate aid. The EC has also acted witha view to fostering greater market stability, mitigating the risk of having high-value seafood products wast-ed or redirected to non-human food purposes, and helping to absorb the impact of the crisis on the re-turn on products.The European Commission (EC) welcomed the quick adoption of the initiative by the European Parlia-ment. EU Commissioner for Environment, Oceans and Fisheries Virginijus Sinkevičius estimated thatthe market disruption caused by this crisis had hit European fisheries and aquaculture sectors particularlyhard and that jobs, communities and food security were at stake. Part of the Coronavirus Response In-vestment Initiative Plus, these exceptional measures included support for the temporary cessation of fish-ing activities due to coronavirus, financial compensations to aquaculture farmers and to processing enter-prises, specific measures for the outermost regions and support to producer organisations for the storageof fishery and aquaculture products. Additional amendments to the EMFF Regulation allowed for moreflexible reallocation of financial resources within the operational programmes of each EU member stateand a simplified procedure for amending operational programmes with respect to the introduction of thenew measures. Operations supported under the temporary coronavirus-related measures became retroac-tively eligible as of 1 February 2020 until 31 December 2020. Therefore, EU member states (MS) coulldearly on start selecting and supporting these operations.EU Commission launched 2020 EMFF pre-financing processIn order to quickly direct the available European public funds to address the consequences of the corona-virus crisis, under Article 139 of the European Structural and Investment Funds (ESIF) Regulation, theEU Commission (EC) has waived this year the obligation to request the refunds of unspent pre-financingfrom the fund until programme closure.In addition, starting on 30 March, the EC has launched the 2020 annual pre-financing process for theEuropean Maritime and Fisheries Fund (EMFF) in advance and paid a sum of up to €160.3 million. Thisallowed the EU member states to use the funds to accelerate investments in response to the coronavirusoutbreak and ease the socio-economic burden caused by the crisis on the fisheries and aquaculture sectors.B – (Legislative) Developments at the EU level with regard to all BSPC members 32European Commission information note to EU member states on support of local fishing and aquaculture commu-nities through EU and national fundsIn March 2020 and as a response to the severe economic impact of the coronavirus crisis on the fishingand aquaculture sectors, DG MARE has published an information note to give guidance to EU memberstates outlining existing tools and instruments to support their local communities. As already describedbefore, these two sectors have been hit particularly hard by significant market disruptions, including frommandatory restaurant closures. Retailers, canteens and other large-scale buyers have been reducing ortemporarily closing down their activities, too. Moreover, the seafood industry depends on logistics suchas landing facilities, transport and storage, also affected by the evolving crisis.The information note provided by the EU Commission details about support measures that were availa-ble immediately and that could be used without delay. There were a number of options, both under thecurrent rules of the EMFF and the newly adopted Temporary Framework for State aid. The new frame-work, adopted on 19 March 2020, allowed EU member states to support affected fishermen and womenand aquaculture producers by allowing aid up to a level of €120,000 per undertaking through directgrants, repayable advances or tax advantages.Moreover, the note provided guidance for measures that were going to become available also for the fish-eries and aquaculture sector after the entry into force of the coronavirus emergency response package pro-posed by the EU Commission on 13 March 2020.In addition to the above measures, the EC continued to investigate other options to support the fisheriesand aquaculture sectors and remained in close contact with professional organisations, as well as the mem-ber states’ authorities and the European Parliament.The Temporary Framework for State aid enabled member states to make support available, in the form ofgrants or tax advantages, to operators facing a sudden shortage or unavailability of liquidity. In many cas-es, this could mean the difference between permanently closing activities and long-term survival of healthybusinesses and thousands of jobs. Upon notification of the measures by the respective EU member state,the EU Commission has put in place procedures to enable very swift assessment and decision-making.The impact of these measures on coastal areas have gone beyond the fisheries and aquaculture sectors. Ac-cording to the EC, also companies in the wider blue economy – from biotech to tourism – should bene-fit, as worsening economic conditions and restrictions on movement have and are still beeing felt acrossthe Union.B – (Legislative) Developments at the EU level with regard to all BSPC members 33These aid measures are fully in line with the CFP, which promotes sustainable use of ocean resources. Aidhas not been applicable to activities explicitly excluded from the de minimis aid in the fishery and aqua-culture sector.5. The European Maritime and Fisheries Fund implementation reportThe new implementation report of the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund (EMFF) was published inDecember 2019.4 It summarises EMFF implementation across EU countries and sea basins according tospecific topics during the period 2014-2018. The report is based on data provided by the Member Statesin 2019, covering the period from January 2014 to December 2018.In terms of activities, the report shows that most funding went to data collection on fisheries and aqua-culture activities (€362.4 million committed), which helps improve stock assessments and understandingof the state of these sectors, including socio-economic conditions. Control and enforcement (€293.5 mil-lion committed) and productive investments in aquaculture (€241.5 million) came in the second andthird positions.The EMFF is one of the five European Structural and Investment (ESI) funds. The Strategic Report forthe ESI funds, along with an overview fact sheet about implementation of the funds in each MemberState, and a summary of ESI fund evaluations were all published on 17 December 2019.The ESI Funds Open Data Platform has also been updated to coincide with the report. The EMFF page nowshows achievements such as the number of jobs maintained in fisheries (6,518 full-time equivalent), the vol-ume of aquaculture production (150,749 tonnes) or the surface area of Natura 2000 areas (1,456 km2),which the EMFF helps to maintain and protect. As with the EMFF implementation report and the Strate-gic Report, the information presented is based on data submitted by the Member States in 2019.4 See report here: https://ec.europa.eu/transparency/regdoc/rep/1/2018/EN/COM-2018-48-F1-EN-MAIN-PART-1.PDFB – (Legislative) Developments at the EU level with regard to all BSPC members 346. Interregional Group Baltic Sea macro-region 2020-2025 of the EuropeanCommittee of the RegionsDuring the first meeting of the Interregional Group Baltic Sea macro-region 2020-2025 of the EuropeanCommittee of the Regions (CoR), which took place online, the objectives of the group were discussed,and participants were given an overview of the Baltic Sea Region (BSR) Smart-up by Ms Taina Tukiain-en. The BSR Smart-up is supposed to result in regional innovation ecosystems as a network for change.This Interregional Group within the CoR foresees two further meetings in 2020: One on 14 October onthe implementation of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and ways to achieve the aim of aplastic free Baltic Sea and one on 10 December about new collaborative operations for BSR regions.The objectives for the Interregional Group Baltic Sea Region 2030 are as follows:• make the BSR become the leading innovative and people-centric macro-region,• the most sustainable forerunner in Europe• and the first plastic-free sea in the world7. Common FisheriesSustainable fisheries: Taking stock of the progress in the implementation of the EU’s common fisheries policyOn 17 June 2020, the EU Commission adopted its annual communication taking stock of the imple-mentation of the common fisheries policy (CFP) and launched a public consultation on the fishing op-portunities for 2021.The communication reaffirms the EU Commission’s commitment to environmentally sustainable andeconomically viable fisheries, a key component of both the biodiversity and farm-to-fork strategies. Pro-gress made under the common fisheries policy demonstrates that sustainability is both attainable and eco-nomically viable.EU Commissioner Virginijus Sinkevičius highlighted positive developments in the management of fish-eries in the EU – recent reports showed that the EU has 50% more fish its seas than in 2003. At the sameB – (Legislative) Developments at the EU level with regard to all BSPC members 35time, as figures showed, large fleet segments have become very profitable over the last years with a positiveimpact on salaries. Sinkevičius also saw the need to intensify efforts to eliminate discards.Evaluation on the ‘Entry/Exit scheme’ for EU vesselsThe EU Commission has published an Entry/Exit scheme aiming to align the capacity of the EU fishingfleet with available fishing resources. In particular, this means that the capacity of any vessel entering thefishery is balanced by the prior withdrawal of a vessel or vessels with the equivalent capacity.Moreover, EU member states (MS) may not increase their fleets above capacity ceilings specified in therelevant EU legislation. The Entry/Exit scheme contributes to the overall objective of the CFP to ensurethat fishing is environmentally, economically and socially sustainable and that it provides a source ofhealthy food for EU citizens.The results of the evaluation of the implementation of the Entry/Exit scheme carried out by the EU Com-mission are the following:• the Entry/Exit scheme is fit for purpose as an instrument to prevent fishing capacity fromincreasing, in particular in contexts where conservation and management measures are noteffective enough to regulate the use of fishing capacity through enforceable input (such as licences)and output measures (such as quotas).• the Entry/Exit scheme remains of relevance in all ecoregions, given the fact that overall in the EUwaters the capacity of a significant number of fleet segments (190 out of the 255 segmentsassessed) is too high in comparison to their fishing opportunities.• MS respect the fundamental rules and capacity ceilings set out in the annex II to the regulation onthe CFP. However, the national implementation rules have led to a perceived lack of flexibility toincrease capacity in order to improve safety or working conditions.• Finally, the evaluation underlines that the effectiveness of the Entry/Exit scheme risks to beundermined by the fact that MS authorities in general do not generate reliable engine powerfigures for registration and certification purposes, as evidenced by a recent study carried out for theCommission.B – (Legislative) Developments at the EU level with regard to all BSPC members 36Wild seabass: new report on the market trends of one of Europe’s top fishFor many small vessels in the EU, seabass represents more than 10% of landing value, peaking at 50% inthe Netherlands and 40% in France, according to a new report5 released by the European Commissionand the European Market Observatory for Fisheries and Aquaculture (EUMOFA).These fleets, mainly passive gears and hooks and liners, are profitable and can value their catch at the high-est price. Seabass caught with hooks and line can reach the price of up to 35€/kg on the French market –the largest market for wild seabass in Europe.The report highlights the main market trends for wild seabass in Europe, including the fleets’ economicdependency on seabass, the impact of recreational fisheries, as well as the significant market segmentationdepending on production methods (wild-caught or farmed), size of the catch and type of gear used.Remote controlled surveillance aircraft facilitate fisheries controlThe European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA) has developed a remotely piloted aircraft system used inmaritime surveillance operations.The system has been readily taken up by the European Fisheries Control Agency (EFCA), who is alwayson the lookout for new and innovative solutions to enhance fisheries control. EFCA has been using aquadcopter, which takes off from the Lundy Sentinel patrol vessel and operates over areas of interest inthe Baltic Sea, the Mediterranean Sea, western waters of the North-East Atlantic Ocean and North Sea.By flying in the vicinity of a fishing vessel, the remote controlled aircraft can collect data from differentactivities on board. This data is then transmitted in real time to EFCA’s liaison officer deployed on boardthe Lundy Sentinel, as well as to EFCA’s coordination centre in Vigo, and EMSA’s headquarters in Lis-bon.QuotasOn 23 July 2019, the EU Commission has announced emergency measures to save the ailing eastern Bal-tic cod stock from impending collapse. Emergency measures banned, with immediate effect, commercialfishing for cod in most of the Baltic Sea until 31 December 2019.5 See report here: https://www.eumofa.eu/documents/20178/136822/Eumofa_Seabass+Market+study+report_EN.pdfB – (Legislative) Developments at the EU level with regard to all BSPC members 37The ban covered all fishing vessels and applied in all those areas of the Baltic Sea where the largest part ofthe stock is present (i.e. subdivisions 24-26), except for some specific targeted derogations. It followedmeasures that had already been taken by some EU member states (MS). Given that these measures didnot ensure a uniform approach in all areas where the eastern Baltic cod stock is found, and that not allMS intended to adopt national measures, the Commission has decided that further emergency action waswarranted.While this fishing ban was an essential immediate step to help protect this vulnerable stock, the Commis-sion and MS were going to revisit the need for longer-term action later in the year 2019, when Ministersmet to decide on fishing opportunities of the year 2020.Scientists also warn of many factors besides fishing that threaten the stock and that need to be addressedseparately, including a lack of salinity, too high water temperatures and too little oxygen, as well as para-site infestation.Background:Recent scientific analysis has reinforced concerns regarding eastern Baltic cod: Researchers are witnessinga rapid decline of the stock that risks leading to a collapse if no action is taken. International scientificbodies have therefore called for a complete fishing stop to turn the situation around. The EU Commis-sion has analysed the scientific evidence available and has discussed these measures with the MS at an Ex-pert Committee meeting.Following scientific advice, total allowable catches for eastern Baltic cod have already been reduced everyyear since 2014, from 65 934t down to 24 112t in 2019. Even so, in the last years fishermen only usedup between 40-60% of the total allowable catch, probably due to a lack of fish of commercial size. Indeed,according to scientists, the volume of commercial sized cod (>= 35 cm) is currently at the lowest level ob-served since the 1950s. In the first half of 2019, fishermen have used around 21% of their available quo-ta.Eastern Baltic cod used to be one of the most valuable fish on which many fishermen depend. More than7,000 fishing vessels from EU MS catch eastern Baltic cod, with 182 vessels from Lithuania and Polanddepending on this stock for more than 50% of their catches.B – (Legislative) Developments at the EU level with regard to all BSPC members 38Under the CFP, the Commission may, at the reasoned request of a MS or on its own initiative, take emer-gency measures to alleviate a serious threat to the conservation of marine biological resources. These meas-ures may be applicable for a maximum period of six months. The Commission has previously taken suchemergency measures to protect vulnerable stocks, e.g. for northern seabass.EU Commission proposal aims to improve long-term sustainability of stocksAt the end of August 2019, the EU Commission adopted a proposal for fishing opportunities for 2020for the commercially most important fish stocks in the Baltic Sea.Based on the latest available scientific advice, the Commission proposed to increase fishing opportunitiesfor herring in the Gulf of Riga and maintain the same levels for salmon in the Gulf of Finland. For re-maining stocks covered by the proposal, the Commission proposes to decrease fishing opportunities.Karmenu Vella, Commissioner for Environment, Maritime Affairs and Fisheries said: „Despite efforts byour fishermen and authorities, the situation of fish stocks in the Baltic is serious, particularly for eastern Balticcod and western herring. In line with scientific advice we propose a prudent package to ensure that sustainablefisheries can continue in the Baltic Sea over time.“The proposed total allowable catches (TAC) are based on scientific advice from the International Councilon the Exploration of the Seas and follow the Baltic multiannual management plan adopted in 2016 bythe European Parliament and the Council.Efforts by fishermen, industry and public authorities had, in recent years, succeeded in rebuilding importantstocks in the Baltic Sea. Where complete scientific advice is available, decisions on the Baltic fishing oppor-tunities had succeeded in setting fishing opportunities for 7 out of 8 stocks in line with the principle of max-imum sustainable yield (MSY), covering 95% of fish landings in volume. However, scientists have discov-ered that the situation was less stable than previously estimated. Decisive action is therefore necessary to re-build all stocks and to ensure that they grow to or remain at sustainable levels, in line with MSY.The Council examined the Commission proposal, in view of adopting it during a Ministerial meeting on14-15 October.EU Commissioner Vella was also going to participate in an exchange of views on the EU-Norway annualconsultation in the framework of the bilateral fisheries agreement. The first round of consultations withB – (Legislative) Developments at the EU level with regard to all BSPC members 39Norway on fisheries arrangements for 2020 were planned to take place towards the end of November2019. In addition, the Council was in October 2019 to adopt a partial general approach on the setting ofa monitoring and evaluation framework for the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund (EMFF), whichcomplements the partial general approach adopted in June 2019. An effective framework should capturethe outcomes of the funded activities and enable reporting on the fund‘s achievements and their contri-bution to the objectives of the common fisheries policy.CodFor eastern Cod, scientists found that the stock size has decreased substantially and has been below safe bi-ological limits for some time already. Therefore, in July 2019, the Commission adopted emergency meas-ures for the remainder of 2019, prohibiting the fishing of cod in the areas where eastern Baltic cod is mostpresent. For 2020, the Commission proposes to allow by-catches only. Moreover, it proposes to extendthe existing spawning closure period in time and scope, and to prohibit recreational fishing in those areaswhere eastern Baltic cod is most present.Western Baltic Cod had been at very low levels for several years. However, last year, indications showed anincreasing stock size. Based on this, the total allowable catches for 2019 were 70% higher. Unfortunately,the most recent scientific observations indicate that the stock size did not increase as much as previouslyestimated. Therefore, the EU Commission proposed to reduce the total allowable catches by 68%, tore-introduce a spawning closure period and to reduce the limit for recreational fishermen to 2 specimensper day. Furthermore, the Commission proposes to limit the use of the TAC in deeper waters to by-catch-es and to prohibit recreational fishing for cod. These measures are necessary because of the mixed presenceof both western and eastern Baltic cod in a specific area and the exceptionally bad condition of the east-ern stock.Financial aid for fishers affected by the closure of the Eastern Baltic cod fisheryOn 31 October 2019, the Commission has adopted a proposal offering support from the EMFF to fish-ers affected by the closure of the Eastern Baltic cod fishery to permanently decommission their fishing ves-sels: Karmenu Vella, EU Commissioner for Environment, Maritime Affairs and Fisheries, explained thatthe Eastern Baltic cod was suffering from an exceptional crisis. According to scientists, three times asmany fish is lost to environmental pressures than to fishing. Nowhere else in Europe this situation wasfound. By creating conditions that will help the cod stock to recover, while supporting the local commu-nities who depend on this stock, both the fishes’ and fishermen’s future in the Baltic Sea should be allevi-ated.B – (Legislative) Developments at the EU level with regard to all BSPC members 40Eastern cod is one of the key fisheries in the Baltic Sea, but the stock is in very poor shape. At the Coun-cil meeting on 14-15 October 2019, fisheries ministers followed the EU Commission’s proposal andagreed to reduce fishing possibilities in 2020 to almost zero. While this step was necessary to give the stocka chance to recover, the EC recognised that it also meant severe and unavoidable economic hardship forthe fleets and fishing communities traditionally targeting this stock. With the mentioned proposal, theEC aims to mitigate the economic impact of the closure and extend a helping hand to those fishers hithardest. The EMFF offers them financial support in this economically difficult situation.In particular, the proposal allows the affected member states, under certain conditions, to use some oftheir unspent EMFF funds to support vessel owners wishing to permanently decommission their vesselstargeting Eastern Baltic cod. At the same time, the proposal caps the number of vessels that can fish forEastern Baltic cod, ensuring that capacity withdrawn from the fleet with EMFF support lowers the pres-sure on the cod stock and helps it recover over time. The proposal does not increase the EMFF fundingper member state nor the EU’s overall budgetary contribution.In addition, given the exceptionally fragile state of the Baltic Sea ecosystem, the Commission proposes toreinforce control and data collection in the Baltic Sea, even beyond the current closure period. Startingfrom 2020, vessels fishing for cod in the Eastern Baltic Sea should be equipped with a vessel monitoringsystem or other equivalent electronic monitoring system. Furthermore, at least 20% of these vessels shouldhave observers on board. This will allow scientists to gather more and better data on how the stock is do-ing and how fisheries are affecting this crucial stock.The ecosystem in the Baltic Sea has been in a fragile state for decades. However, it was only in 2019 thatscientists warned that the environmental conditions have a much more important impact on Eastern Bal-tic cod than previously estimated. The Eastern Baltic cod stock is not expected to recover before 2024,even with no fishing at all.The EC, therefore, adopted first emergency measures in July 2019 prohibiting the fishing of Eastern Bal-tic cod until year-end. On 14-15 October 2019, the Council decided on necessary and unprecedentedfishing restrictions for 2020, reducing the allowed catches for Eastern Baltic cod by 92%, and thus allow-ing bycatches only. In the same Council meeting, the Baltic countries had already endorsed environmen-tal policies to recover the Baltic Sea ecosystem.B – (Legislative) Developments at the EU level with regard to all BSPC members 41Given the strong reductions agreed for other Baltic stocks, the vessels and fleet segments most heavily im-pacted by the closure will not all be able to redirect their fishing activities to other species. The EU Com-mission therefore concluded that contingency measures were necessary, as well as further measures to ad-dress the specific situation of the Baltic Sea.Permanent cessation was allowed under the EMFF until 31 December 2017. The above-mentioned pro-posal made by the Commission in October 2019 would reintroduce this measure, under new, strict con-ditions, for the Eastern Baltic cod fleet until the end of the current EMFF period 2014-2020HerringThe stock size of western herring remains below safe biological limits. The Commission therefore pro-posed to reduce the total allowable catches by 71% which, according to scientific advice, is estimated tobring the stock size back above safe biological limits in 2022. For central herring, the Commission wasproposing a reduction of 10%, since the stock relies on only one year of good reproduction, and a reduc-tion of 27% for the Gulf of Bothnia in line with the International Council on the Exploration of the Seas(ICES) advice, while the situation for Riga herring allowed for an increase of 11%.PlaiceWhile the plaice stock in the eastern Baltic continues to grow, the biomass of the larger stock in the Westwas revised substantially downwards. Following scientific advice on the maximum sustainable yield, theEC proposed to reduce fishing opportunities by 32%.SpratThe biomass of sprat was revised down and the stock relies on only one year of good reproduction. In linewith scientific advice, the EC therefore proposed a reduction of 25%.B – (Legislative) Developments at the EU level with regard to all BSPC members 42Table: Overview of TAC changes 2019-2020 (figures in tones except for salmon, which is in number of pieces)2019 2020Stock and Council agreement (in tonnes Commission proposal (in tonnesICES fishing zone; subdivision & % change from 2018 TAC) & % change from 2019 TAC)Western Cod 22-24 9,515 (+70%) 3,065 (-68%)Eastern Cod 25-32 24,112 (-15%) pm (by-catch only)Western Herring 22-24 9,001 (-48%) 2,651 (-71%)Bothnian Herring 30-31 88,703 (-7%) 65,018 (-27%)Riga Herring 28.1 31,044 (+7%) 34,445 (+11%)Central Herring 25-27, 28.2, 29, 32 170,360 (-26%) 153,384 (-10%)Sprat 22-32 270,772 (+3%) 203,027 (-25%)Plaice 22-32 10,122 (+43%) 6,894 (-32%)Main Basin Salmon 22-31 91,132 (0%) 86,575 (-5%)Gulf of Finland Salmon 32 9,703 (-3%) 9,703 (0%)BackgroundThe proposal is part of the European Union‘s approach to adjust the levels of fishing to long-term sustain-ability targets, or maximum sustainable yield (MSY) by 2020 as agreed by the Council and the EuropeanParliament in the Common Fisheries Policy. The Commission‘s proposal is also in line with the policy in-tentions expressed in the Commission‘s Communication on Fishing Opportunities for 2020 and with theMultiannual Plan for the management of cod, herring and sprat in the Baltic Sea.Reintroduction of sturgeon in the BalticThe Institute for Fisheries at the regional research agency of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern receives 1.3 mil-lion euros from the EMFF and regional funds to reintroduce the almost extinct species of sturgeon to theBaltic Sea. Within the next three years, a self-reproducing population shall be established. Approximately1000 years ago, the “American Atlantic sturgeon”, called Baltic sturgeon today, had migrated into theB – (Legislative) Developments at the EU level with regard to all BSPC members 43Baltic and drove out the European Atlantic sturgeon. Due to intense pollution, construction works andfishery, the sturgeon population has been decreasing dramatically since the middle of the 19th century.Greenpeace protestIn July 2020, Greenpeace activists protested against demersal trawling at “Eagle’s Bed” (in German: Ad-lersgrund, see graphic below) near Sassnitz, which is a Natura2020 protected area, by dropping hugestone blocks into the sea. The officer in charge of the fishing fleet demanded an environmental assment ofdemersal trawling in the area.According to the Flora-Fauna-Habitat (FFH) directive of 1992, demersal trawling and other ecologicallydisadvantageous techniques are forbidden in marine protected areas, yet professional fishing is excludedfrom this because of management plans within the framework of the Regulation1380/2013 of the CFP.Source: https://www.bfn.de/themen/meeresnaturschutz/nationale-meeresschutzgebiete/ostsee-awz.html, access: 29 July 2020.B – (Legislative) Developments at the EU level with regard to all BSPC members 44AGRIFISH Council 16-17 December 2019 BrusselsAfter long and intense negotiations, the AGRIFISH Council announced a new era of European fisheriesfor 2020.On 16-17 December 2019, it reached agreement in the following areas:First, the Council agreed on a very significant reduction of fishing opportunities for key stocks. This willensure that six of the eight fully assessed Baltic stocks are managed in line with maximum sustainableyield.Building on successes like with the Northern hake (today fishers can catch twice as much as in 2008) andthe Northern seabass, the representatives of the MS agreed on a number of substantial increases in catchlimits for more than 25 valuable fish stocks.For two stocks, western herring and eastern Baltic cod, unprecedented reductions were agreed, that are inline with the Baltic Management Plan. For western herring, a reduction of 65% is aimed at setting the stockon path to be no longer threatened in 2023. For eastern Baltic cod, all targeted fishing will be banned andonly a limited quota will be allowed for unavoidable by-catches, in order not to choke other fisheries.However, agreement was reached that a significant reduction of total allowable catches was not in itself suf-ficient to protect some stocks. Therefore, as a second category of action, the Council agreed on a number ofmeasures to close areas for several months in order to protect the spawning periods of vulnerable stocks.The focus of the agreed fisheries management was on strict measures increasing selectivity. The selectivityenables fishers to minimize the unavoidable catches. Increase of mesh sizes, extension of protection zonesand the monitoring measures introduced are supposed to improve selectivity and sustainability of fishingactivities in the Celtic Sea and the Kattegat.Very importantly, Baltic Member States – for the first time – made a clear written commitment to effec-tively and urgently address at source other causes of unhealthy fish stocks (such as pollution, eutrophica-tion and habitat degradation resulting from industrial and agricultural activities), through the implemen-tation of EU rules and, where appropriate, through additional measures.The overall agreement for the Atlantic and the North Sea stocks brought 99.4 percent of landings in theEU from sustainable sources. For some of the remaining stocks the agreement foresees even stricter con-servation measures.B – (Legislative) Developments at the EU level with regard to all BSPC members 45Sustainable fisheries is being extended to new sea basins. For the first time ever, the Commission has pro-posed fishing opportunities covering the Mediterranean Sea. For the Black Sea, a compromise was reachedon quotas for the two most important commercial species, sprat and turbot, shared between Bulgaria andRomania.2020 is a crucial year for European fisheries. It is the year when all scientifically-assessed stocks should befished in line with the maximum sustainable yield (MSY) principle. Concretely, this means we shouldonly catch the right amount of fish that would not hinder the regeneration of the stocks. Conservationleads to economic development. As the size of some key fish stocks has been increasing – for instance,Haddock in the Celtic Sea and Sole in the Bristol Channel – so has the profitability of the fishing sector,with an estimated €1.3 billion net profit for 2019.With this in mind, the EC has proposed TACs to keep the fish stocks healthy, while allowing the indus-try to profit from fishing sustainably.For the Atlantic and the North Sea stocks in the EU, 91% of the TACs proposed are in line with MSY, whilefor the rest the Commission is proposing even stricter conservation measures to be taken up urgently byMember States.New EU Fish Market 2019 edition for fish and seafoodThe newly released EU Fish market report 2019 provides an overview on what fishery products are ex-ported or imported, when, where and what is consumed and by whom next to what are the main trendsof the European fisheries and aquaculture sector. The 2019 edition delivers analyses of landings, importand export origins and destinations, along with an overview of how EU Member States’ fisheries and aq-uaculture sectors fit into the global picture.Consumption of fish and seafood in the EU was estimated at 24.35 kg per capita in 2017. On average,EU citizens ate half a kilo less compared to the previous year. Portugal remains the absolute champion interms of per capita consumption. In 2017, the Portuguese ate 56.8 kg of fish and seafood per capita,which is more than twice the EU level. After Portugal, Spain and Malta are the countries in which mostfish and seafood is eaten. Hungary, Bulgaria and Romania registered the lowest level in the EU in termsof per capita consumption. Compared with 2016, the most significant decrease in absolute terms con-cerned Luxembourg (-2.6 kg per capita) while the most notable growth was observed in Belgium (+2.3 kgper capita).B – (Legislative) Developments at the EU level with regard to all BSPC members 46The top five species consumed in the EU – tuna, cod, salmon, Alaska pollock and shrimps – accounted for44% of total volumes in 2017.EU household expenditures continued an upward trend in 2018, reaching €59.3 billion, 24% higherthan in 2009. The EU-28 average per capita household expenditure on fish and seafood amounted to€115 in 2018. EU consumer prices of fish and seafood increased with an average 3% per year from 2009to 2018.In none of the EU countries the expenditure on fish and seafood is higher than that for meat. Since 2009,at EU level, households spent around one-quarter of the amount spent on meat for purchasing fish andseafood (€226 billion in 2018).In 2018, Italy, France, Spain were the countries with the highest level of total expenditure, while Malta,Slovenia and Cyprus those with the lowest level.From 2008 to 2017, the value of seabass and gilthead seabream farmed in the EU increased considerably.Greece registered a 50% increase for both; in Spain, the increase for seabass was by 125%.Wild-caught products predominated in the EU fish and seafood market, accounting for three-quarters ofthe total per capita consumption. Although slightly less than in 2016, the 2017 consumption of farmedproducts in the EU was 2% above its decade average.In 2017, the volume of products landed in the EU reached a 10-year peak of 4.68 million tonnes, main-ly due to the significant growth of sandeel landings in Denmark. At the same time, decreasing prices ofsome of the main landed species, especially of blue whiting and herring, caused a slight decrease in over-all value of fisheries production.In 2017, aquaculture production in the EU reached a 10-year high of 1.37 million tonnes with a value ofmore than €5 billion. Its value almost doubled in those 10 years, due to the increased production of highvalue species, such as salmon, seabass and bluefin tuna, and to the strong price increase of some major spe-cies, including salmon, seabass, gilthead seabream, oyster and clam.The EU self-sufficiency ratio, which measures the capacity of EU Member States to meet demand fromtheir own production, reached 43% in 2017 – in line with its 10-year average. The internal demand ofseafood in the EU is mostly met through imports, as they cover around 60% of the total supply (2017).B – (Legislative) Developments at the EU level with regard to all BSPC members 47The EU trade balance deficit reached a negative peak of more than €20 billion.Salmon, cod, tuna, Alaska pollock, fishmeal and shrimps are the most imported products. On the otherhand, almost 15% of EU supply is exported. The main products exported are herring, mackerel, bluewhiting, tuna, fishmeal and fish oil.More than one-quarter of fish and seafood products imported in the EU originates from Norway. Swedenand Denmark, the main entry points for Norwegian products into the internal market, allow the importsto reach other Member States’ markets. The US and China are the main markets in value terms for EUexports, but the highest volumes are actually destined for Nigeria and Norway.ln 2017, the estimated level of consumption of tuna reached of 3.07 kg per capita. This is the highest lev-el annual consumption ever reached since 2008 (3.00 kg per capita).In 2018, cod was the second most valued species traded within the EU. Most of these flows originatedfrom the Netherlands, Denmark and Sweden.The supply of Alaska pollock to the EU market reached the highest volume ever – 305,000 tonnes – in2018.Hake was the main contributor to the decline of the EU household consumption of fresh fish and sea-food.The European Market Observatory for Fisheries and Aquaculture Products (EUMOFA) annual report“The EU fish market” is available in English, French, Spanish, German and Italian.EUMOFA has launched on 2 October 2019 the world’s most comprehensive publicly accessible trade data-base on fisheries and aquaculture products. EUMOFA is a platform developed by the European Commis-sion that offers information on the European Union fisheries and aquaculture sector. It gives access to thelatest industry data, analyses EU markets dynamics, and supports business decisions and policy-making.B – (Legislative) Developments at the EU level with regard to all BSPC members 48Through this new dataset bilateral trade information of 68 non-EU countries is publicly available and ac-cessible in all EU 24 official languages. The data covers monthly imported and exported volumes and val-ues for each species traded, by presentation and preservation state, and by partner country.The international trade data of all EU 28 countries + Norway and Iceland are already available on thewebsite. With this new dataset, EUMOFA becomes the first publicly available service covering importand export of around 100 countries in the world.Through this new query, users will be able to:• Monitor international exchanges of main commercial species• Analyse trade flows of raw material and processed products• Compare prices of species exported/imported in different markets• Identify emerging markets, trends and supply sources to identify potential opportunities• Compare market shares with competitors.Tailored information can be found in the international trade data section.Data can be also extracted from the Bulk Download section in CSV format for custom analysis and in-terpretation: https://www.eumofa.eu/bulk-download-pageInternational trade data: EUMOFA webinar video and presentation availableThe European Market Observatory for Fisheries and Aquaculture products (EUMOFA) has released thevideo recording and other material from its webinar on international trade data. A video recording of thewebinar with English, French and Spanish subtitles is now available on the EUMOFA website. The collec-tion also includes the presentation and the summary of discussions with replies to questions raised duringthe seminar.The webinar focused on how to extract import and export volumes, values and prices of each species trad-ed by the nearly one hundred countries covered by EUMOFA, the world’s most comprehensive and pub-licly accessible trade database on fisheries and aquaculture products. It also included tips on how to usethe database to view trade flows between countries and understand market phenomena.Visit the EUMOFA website for more information on the webinar and the EUMOFA international tradedatabase.B – (Legislative) Developments at the EU level with regard to all BSPC members 49Sustainable Fishing Partnership Agreements and Ocean Partnership AgreementsEU and the Seychelles conclude negotiations for a new Sustainable Fisheries Partnership AgreementOn 22 October 2019, the EU and the Seychelles have concluded negotiations for a new Sustainable Fish-eries Partnership Agreement (SFPA) and a new protocol that will strengthen their cooperation in the fish-eries field for the next six years.The agreement marks a new important milestone of the long-standing bilateral cooperation in fisheriesbetween the EU and Seychelles and of their commitment to promote a sustainable use of marine resourc-es. This is the most important tuna agreement in place for the EU both in financial terms and in terms offishing opportunities. It will allow the EU fleet (40 tuna purse-seiners and 8 long-liners) to continue fish-ing in Seychelles waters for a duration of 6 years while continuing to support the sustainable developmentof the fisheries sector in the Seychelles.Based on a reference tonnage of 50,000 tonnes, the EU will provide the Seychelles with an annual finan-cial contribution of €5,300,000. A significant part of this contribution, €2,800,000 per year, is specifical-ly earmarked to promote the sustainable management of fisheries in Seychelles, as well as to support thedevelopment of small-scale fisheries. For the whole duration of the protocol, the total estimated value, in-cluding the EU ship-owners contribution, amounts to €58,200,000, equivalent to €9,700,000 per year.The new agreement is based on the principles of the common fisheries policy such as transparency, gov-ernance of fishing activities, non-discrimination, respect of the scientific advice and scientific cooperationon data collection and analysis. It also complies with Seychelles’ legislation and the management measurestaken in the context of the Indian Ocean Tuna Commission, of which both parties are members.The new partnership agreement will also make it possible to strengthen cooperation and consultations be-tween the parties in the context of the Indian Ocean Tuna Commission and other regional organisations.Cooperation on monitoring, control and surveillance on fishing activities will be further reinforced, alsothrough the possibility of carrying out joint EU-Seychelles inspections on EU vessels fishing in Seychelles’waters. The protocol is supposed to contribute to the social and economic development of Seychelles bybetter defining the conditions of locals working on EU vessels as well as by providing financial support forbuilding the necessary infrastructure dedicated to local fishing activities.The new six years protocol contains a number of new provisions reinforcing the monitoring of the EUfleet activities (including through the Electronic Reporting System and Electronic Monitoring Device).B – (Legislative) Developments at the EU level with regard to all BSPC members 50Environmental protection is taken into account through clear provisions on the use and management offish aggregating devices and on support vessels, and the reinforcement of the role of observers. Such pro-visions take into account the creation of marine spatial planning areas in Seychelles waters.For the first time, EU ship-owners payments will also include a specific contribution to a dedicated fundthat Seychelles will put in place to improve environmental management and the observations of marineecosystems in its waters.The EU and Seychelles will now initiate the necessary legislative procedures for the signature and conclu-sion of the new agreement and its implementing protocol.What is more, the EU has on 7 July 2020 extended the protocol to the existing Fisheries PartnershipAgreement with the Islamic Republic of Mauritania for one year.The fisheries partnership agreement with Mauritania is the biggest mixed agreement for the EU, both infinancial terms and in terms of fishing opportunities. Under the current framework with Mauritania, theEU fleet is authorized to fish in Mauritanian waters for shrimp, demersal fish, tuna and small pelagics, upto around 287,000 tonnes per year. In addition to the fees paid by the European fleet, the EU pays a fi-nancial contribution of €61,625,000 per year, including over €4,000,000 to support the fisheries policyin Mauritania, in particular the improvement of research and fisheries governance.Despite intentions to agree a new protocol, the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted the initial planning forthe negotiations. The parties considered a one-year extension of the current protocols to be the most prag-matic approach to avoid interruption in the activity of Union fishing vessels in Mauritanian waters. Theextensions will be on the same terms as the current ones, with identical fishing opportunities for EU ves-sels as well as identical financial contributions from both the European Union and the ship-owners.Meanwhile, negotiations for a new agreement and protocol will continue with a view to the adoption ofa new sustainable fisheries partnership agreement, before the expiration of the agreed extension.On 19 July 2019, the EU has signed a sustainable fishing partnership agreement protocol with Senegal.Both parties have a long-standing partnership in the field of fisheries, which started back in 1980 and hasevolved during the years. The new 5-year protocol implementing the 2015 agreement is replacing the cur-rent protocol due to expire in November 2019. This new protocol allows EU vessels - a maximum of 28tuna seiners, 10 pole-and-liners, 5 long liners and 2 trawlers - to fish tuna-like species and hake in the wa-ters of Senegal. This is based on the best available scientific advice, a stakeholders’ consultation, andB – (Legislative) Developments at the EU level with regard to all BSPC members 51follows the recommendations of the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas(ICCAT). Reflecting on the principles of the CFP, this protocol will contribute to the sustainable man-agement and conservation of natural resources in the waters of Senegal as based on scientific advice; itforesees a lower TAC for hake compared to the current protocol. The reference tonnage for tuna has beenadapted to historical catches. Furthermore, it also foresees measures to limit catches of marine birds andmarine mammals, and to reinforce the role of scientific observers.In exchange for the fishing rights, the EU will offer Senegal a yearly financial contribution of €1,700,000.Part of this contribution, €900,000 per year, is earmarked to promote the sustainable management offisheries in Senegal, in particular through measures that reinforce control and surveillance capacities andthe fight against illegal, unregulated and unreported fishing. Moreover, the EU funds will be used to pro-mote the development of scientific capacities and to support the development of the artisanal fishing. Inaddition to this amount, ship owners will also contribute with approximately €1,350,000 per year.The new protocol will enter into force when the necessary legislative procedures for its conclusion havebeen completed.Another sustainable fishing partnership agreement between the EU and Morocco entered into force on19 July 2019. It is valid for four years (2019-2023).EU and Canada conclude ocean partnership agreementThe European Union and Canada signed an ocean partnership agreement on 18 July 2019. It includes com-mitments to combatting the negative effects of illegal, unreported and unregulated fisheries, marine pollu-tion and climate change. It also aims to facilitate the sustainable development of marine and maritime sec-tors and the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, particularly SDG 14.The partnership sets out general lines for future collaboration in areas such as:• the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity in the high seas;• the fight against marine pollution, including marine plastic litter and micro-plastics;• the implementation of the Paris Agreement on climate change as relevant to the oceans;• the prevention of unregulated commercial fishing in the central Arctic;• the strengthening of ocean governance in regional and global forums;• the promotion of safe and decent living and working conditions at sea;• the fight against illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing.B – (Legislative) Developments at the EU level with regard to all BSPC members 52Ocean partnerships are a new tool of International ocean governance, which is a priority issue for the EU.The EU and Canada have a longstanding cooperation on fisheries and ocean affairs. They also share thegoal of ensuring conservation and the sustainable use of oceans and marine resources in accordance witha multi-lateral and rules-based approach.EU and China join forces to improve international ocean governanceAt the first Blue Partnership Forum for the Oceans on 5 September 2019, the European Commission andChinese authorities have shown their interest to work together and improve international ocean govern-ance. Together with Chinese and European stakeholders, both administrations have started to define jointactions that will implement the Ocean Partnership, signed in July 2018.The Ocean Partnership between the EU and China marks an important moment in bilateral relations. Itsimplementation can play a major role in achieving the targets of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Devel-opment, in particular SDG 14. That is why on 5 September 2019, European Commissioner KarmenuVELLA invited more than 150 European and Chinese stakeholders in Brussels, to help shape joint actionsand future cooperation.Among the first conclusions of the day were named:1. The blue economy and the Blue Economy Finance Principles – Stakeholders agreed more directinvestments should go into sustainable oceans sectors and ecosystem restoration. Financial insti-tutions play a crucial role in directing financial flows. The Blue Economy Finance Initiative andPrinciples are a practical tool for them to deliver ocean solutions.2. International cooperation on sustainable fisheries – China and the EU are important global fisher-ies players. Actions should reinforce the implementation of the existing legal framework, includ-ing ratification of the Port State Measures Agreement, enhancing Regional fisheries managementorganisations’ performance, strengthening the fight against illegal and unreported fishing andstrengthening fisheries data transparency.3. Area-based management tools, including maritime spatial planning and marine protected areas –Participants stressed that different sectors (science, business, public organisations, NGOs...) needto work together when developing these tools. EU and China should strengthen cooperation inthe planning of marine protected areas and advancement of global maritime spatial planning. EUB – (Legislative) Developments at the EU level with regard to all BSPC members 53stakeholders called on China to support the EU and its Member States’ proposals to create twomarine protected areas in the Southern Ocean at the annual meeting of the Commission for theConservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources in October 2019.The Blue Partnership Forum for the Oceans was followed by a high-level dialogue on oceans affairs co-chaired by Commissioner Vella and Administrator Hong Wang, from China’s State Ocean Administra-tion.For 2020, China had planned to host the Blue Partnership Forum as well as three high level dialogues onoceans and fisheries, including illegal and unreported fishing, on Law of the Sea and on the Arctic.Background:The EU and China have a longstanding cooperation on ocean affairs and the organisation of the EU-Chi-na Blue Year in 2017 created further momentum to strengthen bilateral cooperation. The “Blue Partnershipfor the Oceans: towards better ocean governance, sustainable fisheries and a thriving maritime economy” was signedat the EU-China Summit on 16 July 2018 in Beijing. The Ocean Partnership with China was the first ofits kind and sets out a comprehensive framework for cooperation in the domain of the oceans. In April2019, at the EU-China Summit, political leaders reaffirmed their commitment to the effective implemen-tation of the Blue Partnership for the Oceans, including cooperation on promoting sustainable fisheriesand fighting illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing. In particular, leaders reaffirmed their commit-ment to the exchange on the conservation and sustainable use of Antarctic marine living resources, in-cluding the establishment of marine protected areas in the Antarctic Ocean.Traceability of fisheries productsOn 10 October 2019, a workshop in Brussels on traceability of fisheries and aquaculture products broughttogether representatives of the European Commission, the Secretariat of the Council, the European Par-liament, the EU MS and representatives of the Advisory Councils.Knowing the origin of fish is important to guarantee that it was legally caught. Accurate information ofits capture needs to be passed on from net to plate, which sometimes is difficult. During this workshop,participants explored different traceability solutions, such as bar codes and digital systems as well as block-chain technology and standardisation. The results of these discussions supported the on-going revision ofthe European Commission‘s proposal for new provisions on traceability within the EU control regulationB – (Legislative) Developments at the EU level with regard to all BSPC members 54(regulation 1224/2009 from the year 2009), currently under discussion by the co-legislators. Key ele-ments of the revision are, among other things, the more accurate and complete reporting and tracking forsmale scale fleet and the control of recreational fisheries and a better control of engine power.Towards a sustainable EU food systemOn 20 May 2020, the European Commission has adopted a Farm to Fork Strategy for a fair, healthy andenvironmentally friendly food system and a Biodiversity Strategy. The strategies are mutually reinforcing,bringing together nature, fishers, farmers, business and consumers to jointly work towards a competitive-ly sustainable future in line with the European Green Deal.Under the Farm to Fork initiative, forthcoming strategic guidelines for the sustainable development ofEU aquaculture will provide direction to increase the sector’s sustainability and competitiveness.They should also guide the sector towards a 50% reduction of antimicrobials use as well as the increase inorganic aquaculture production. The Commission also plans a separate strategy for the development ofalgae production and use in the EU. Moreover, the strategy reiterates the need for full implementation ofthe common fisheries policy.A number of measures, including financial instruments, will be available to support European fishers andaquaculture producers in driving the necessary transition. All initiatives announced in the Farm to ForkStrategy will be subject to further discussion and consultation with the stakeholders.The Biodiversity Strategy aims to strengthen the protection of marine ecosystems and to restore them toachieve “good environmental status,” through the expansion of protected areas and the establishment ofstrictly protected areas for habitats and fish stocks recovery. The strategy stresses the need for an ecosys-tem-based approach to the management of human activities at sea. This means addressing the overex-ploitation of fishing stocks to or under Maximum Sustainable Yield levels (i.e. a level that will allow ahealthy future for the fish stock’s biomass); eliminating bycatch, or at least reducing it to non-dangerouslevels, in order to protect sea mammals, turtles and birds, especially those that are threatened with extinc-tion or in bad status; and tackling practices that damage the seabed.Activities of the European Fisheries Control Agency in 2019According to the annual report of the European Fisheries Control Agency (EFCA) published on 30 April2019, the agency supported member states and the European Commission in the implementation of theB – (Legislative) Developments at the EU level with regard to all BSPC members 55CFP’s control regime by coordinating joint deployment plans in addition to developping specific projectsrelated to compliance with the landing obligation and new technologies such as remote electronic moni-toring and capacity building operations in relation to third countries.The European cooperation on coast guard functions enhanced EFCA’s capacity to contribute to an effec-tive and uniform implementation of the CFP. During the year, the agency extended operational coopera-tion with EUROPOL and the European Union Agency for Criminal Justice Cooperation (EUROJUST)in the framework of the European multidisciplinary platform against criminal threats, thus reinforcingthe fight against illegal fishing activities.The new Specific Control and Inspection Programme Commission Implementing Decision introducedsome new areas and species. Subsequently it was necessary to widen the scope of the Joint DeploymentPlans (JDPs), through which EFCA provided assistance to MS and the European Commission in the areaof control, inspection and surveillance. In 2019, the cooperative efforts led to 32 381 coordinated inspec-tions, an increase by 20,28% in comparison to 2018 (26 922), and to 1 487 suspected infringements de-tected (see graph below), an increase by 108,26% in comparison to 2018 (714). It was carried out with-out additional EFCA resources.EFCA contributed to the work of the Member States Control Expert Groups, focusing on the implemen-tation of the Landing Obligation, in particular on the Risk Assessment and Compliance evaluation. In re-sponse to a request from the Baltic Sea Control Expert Group (BALTFISH), EFCA commenced a com-pliance evaluation exercise on the Landing Obligation in the Baltic Sea in 2017 and 2018. Moreover, dur-ing the second half of 2019, EFCA worked with control expert groups on the development of a RemoteElectronic Monitoring pilot project template.EFCA used the framework of the JDPs to enhance the standardisation of inspections, in particular, lasthaul observation procedures during inspection at sea in all EU JDP areas. The publication of specific tech-nical guidelines was another important milestone in EFCA’s work for standardisation. Particularly, in2019 EFCA finalised and published guidelines on remote electronic monitoring and, in collaborationwith Member States, on risk assessment and compliance indicators. To level the playing field, the second-ment of EU inspectors to multinational inspection teams contributed to the standardisation of inspectionprocedures among MS. More than 1000 staff from EU and non-EU countries are now registered in theEFCA e-learning platform.B – (Legislative) Developments at the EU level with regard to all BSPC members 56EFCA also assisted the European Commission in the framework of international organisations dealingwith fisheries, in particular to strengthen operational coordination and compliance in Regional FisheriesManagement Organisations, namely the Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organisation, the North East At-lantic Fisheries Commission, the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas andthe General Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean.In the framework of the European Coast Guard cooperation, the cooperation with Frontex and the Eu-ropean Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA) further developed in the area of capacity building with EFCAcoordinating the overall drafting process of the Practical Handbook on European Cooperation on CoastGuard Functions. Moreover, EFCA has led the process to coordinate the follow-up by the three agenciesof the European Coast Guard Functions Academies Network. Also, the control agency supported thethird workshop of the European Coast Guard Functions Forum on “Multipurpose Maritime Operations”held in Catania, Sicily, Italy from 3 to 5 June 2019 and participated in the Coastex drill.EFCA’s chartered Offshore Patrol Vessel was operational for 308 days and provided a robust platform forfisheries inspections leading to a total of 247 inspections and 136 suspected infringements detected. En-hanced capacity sharing with EMSA enabled the EFCA chartered offshore patrol vessel Lundy Sentinel tobe upgraded for multipurpose missions; to carry pollution response equipment as well as a Remotely Pi-loted Aircraft System.EFCA’s information systems enabled the collection of data from each Member State providing details oftheir fishing vessels, catches and other such information. Overall, EFCA was sent Electronic ReportingSystem-logbook data from 4 564 vessels in 15 Member States (MS) and Vessel Monitoring System datafrom different vessels, throughout all MS. The volume of Vessel Monitoring System messages received bythe EFCA Vessel Monitoring System was 39.2 million messages.B – (Legislative) Developments at the EU level with regard to all BSPC members 57Source: https://www.efca.europa.eu/en/content/pressroom/efca-annual-report-2019-adopted-agency%E2%80%99s-ad-ministrative-board, accessed: 31 July 2020.EFCA adopted Work Programme for 2020 with a renewed approach to cooperationIn October 2019, before the COVID-19 crisis, the European Fisheries Control Agency (EFCA) adoptedits work programme for 2020. Subject to the adoption of the European Union (EU) budgetary authority,EFCA was to receive EUR 17.6 million for 2020 to safeguard the sustainability of fisheries resources.The funds were planned to be used to enhance cooperation between EU Member States in the frameworkof the Monitoring, Control and Surveillance measures of the Common Fisheries Policy. EFCA’s work fo-cuses on four strategic areas to ensure a compliant, efficient and uniform implementation of the CFP: op-erational coordination, risk assessment and data analysis, compliance with international provisions capac-ity building and support to Coast Guard functions.B – (Legislative) Developments at the EU level with regard to all BSPC members 58Calls for proposals and tendersCall for proposals MARE/2020/08 Strengthening regional cooperation in the area of fisheries data collectionOpen: 04/05/2020 to 31/07/2020https://ec.europa.eu/fisheries/press/call-proposals-mare202008-strengthening-regional-coopera-tion-area-fisheries-data-collection_en, access: 30 July 2020.Call for tenders MARE/2020/OP/0006 Study on Weighing of Fisheries ProductsOpen until: 09/07/2020Evaluation of weighing procedures in member states (MS) to ensure all fishery products are weighed/doc-umented correctly.It includes field works and technical verification as well as assessment of samplingmethodologies described in the Control Regulation and evaluation of effectiveness of sample weighingused by MS (sampling, control plans and common control programmes). For frozen fisheries products as-sessment of suitability of the existing tare weight EC provisions and for pelagic landings assessment of theappropriateness of the 2 % water and ice deduction allowance.Tender: EASME/2020/OP/0022- Synergies and Clustering Between Maritime ProjectsOpen until: 05/10/2020 10:00EASME wishes to enter into a service contract to improve the effectiveness of bottom-up initiatives fund-ed through calls for proposals and supported under the direct management of the EMFF fund.Address of the buyer profile: (URL) ec.europa.eu/easme/enAward method Best price-quality ratioEstimated total value 900000.00 EURB – (Legislative) Developments at the EU level with regard to all BSPC members 598. Blue BioeconomyBaltic Blue Bioeconomy HackathonThe SUBMARINER Network was organising the first-ever Baltic Blue Bioeconomy Hackathon to collectinnovative and creative ideas to promote, accelerate and shape the future of the Blue Bioeconomy in theBaltic Sea Region. As part of the Interreg Baltic Sea Region Blue Platform project, organizers have beeninviting students, companies, authorities and other actors active in the Baltic Blue Bioeconomy to join aBaltic Blue Bioeconomy Hackathon in April 2020 at the marine station of Kristineberg, Sweden. Due tothe COVID-19 measures across Europe, the Baltic Blue Bioeconomy Hackathon has been postponed un-til further notice. The event was expected to still take place at a later date in 2020. Experts and studentsinterested in attending the Hackathon on a new date, can express their interest via internet: https://subma-riner-network.eu/hackathonEuropean Patent Office prohibited patents on breedingThe European Patent Office has so far granted patents on conventionally bred plants. The Boards of Ap-peal as the highest court of the European Patent Office has decided that plants and animals from essen-tially biological breeding processes may not be protected by patents. This does not apply to patent appli-cations filed before July 1, 2017.Genetically modified plants and animals may still be patented. Living organisms produced with the Cris-pr gene scissors (so-called new breeding methods) can also be patented.B – (Legislative) Developments at the EU level with regard to all BSPC members 609. ConsultationsOpen public consultation on the deep-sea access regulationConsultation period: 13. Mai 2020 – 5. August 2020The deep-sea access regulation aims to support the sustainability of deep-sea stocks by reducing the envi-ronmental impact of deep-sea fisheries, preventing adverse impacts on vulnerable marine ecosystems, andsupporting improvements to scientific knowledge.European fishery statistics – simplified data collectionConsultation period: 20 July 2020 - 23 November 2020This initiative aims to streamline and simplify the data collections needed to produce statistics on the Eu-ropean fishing industry (catches, landings of fishery products, fish farming/aquaculture).It will also bring these statistics up to date with the data and information needs of the EU’s fishing policy(the common fisheries policy).Fishing opportunities for 2021 under the common fisheries policyConsultation period: 17 June 2020 - 31 August 2020The EU Commission aims at allowing all European citizens to express an opinion on the way in whichlevels of fishing effort and quotas are set according to the new common fisheries policy and in relation toscientific advice about sustainable fishing.EU fish farms (aquaculture) – updated guidelines14. Juli 2020 – 27. Oktober 2020Since 2013, the farming of fish and seafood (aquaculture) in the EU has been subject to a set of EU-widestrategic guidelines, which set out standard priorities and targets, to ensure the sector is run and developedsustainably.This act updates the guidelines, in line with relevant recent developments.The revision will also help EU countries update their multiannual aquaculture plans.B – (Legislative) Developments at the EU level with regard to all BSPC members 61Consultation on international ocean governanceConsultation period: 15 July 2020 -15 October 2020The European Commission and the European External Action Service launched a consultation on 15 July2020 to assess development needs and options for the EU’s international ocean governance agenda. Theconsultation aims to identify relevant actions in light of today’s challenges and opportunities to deliverglobal sustainability objectives for oceans in particular the Sustainable Development Goal on the oceans(SDG14) under the 2030 Agenda in support of the European Green Deal.Ocean governance concerns the international and regional processes, agreements, rules and institutionsthat allow the international community to coordinate and work together for conservation and sustaina-ble use at sea, where challenges cannot be tackled by one country alone.EU Arctic policyConsultation period: 21. Juli 2020 – 10. November 2020The EU’s Arctic policy dates from 2016, but new challenges and opportunities caused by climate changeand receding sea ice, and the region’s ever increasing geo-political importance, mean this policy should beupdated.The input gained will inform the next policy steps.B – (Legislative) Developments at the EU level with regard to all BSPC members 62II. Energy aspects with regard to maritime policy1. Nordstream 2 and the Interregional Group in theEuropean Committee of the RegionsThe Interregional Group Nordstream 2 within the European Committee of the Regions has ceased to ex-ist. It had been constituted in December 2017, and next to Member of Parliament/the martime rappor-teur Jochen Schulte, it consisted of 14 founding members, mainly from Poland and Lithuania.Likewise, construction works stopped in December 2019.Since 15 July 2020, the «Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act» has been applied toNord Stream 2, enabling sanctions against the European firms involved in its construction and operation.Three US senators send a legal notice to Sassnitz harbour, which was providing goods, services and sup-port for the Nord Stream 2 project (including by provisioning vessels for the project). The Regional Par-liament of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern addressed the issue on 27 August 2020, expressing its disconcert-ment.The German Federal Network Agency had not exempted Nord Stream 2 from the EU Gas Directive. 24EU-members in the meanwhile expressed in a démarche delivered to the US Government, that extra-ter-ritorial sanctions imposed by third countries are against international law.The pipelines is supposed to transfer additional 55 billion cubic metres of gas to Europe each year, whichis the same amount transferred by North Stream 1. Russia announced to complete the pipeline by 2021.2. Towards the energy of the future: New call for proposals forenvironmental monitoring of tidal and wave energy.The European Commission has published a new call for grants in September 2019 to support the devel-opment of ocean energy in Europe. Budgeted at € 2.3 million, this call wanted to attract projects thatB – (Legislative) Developments at the EU level with regard to all BSPC members 63could improve environmental monitoring of tidal and wave energy devices. Deadline for applications was15 January 2020.Ocean energy is a promising source for clean, predictable and reliable energy made in the EU. It couldcontribute to the EU‘s energy independence and its objective of sourcing at least 32% of EU energy con-sumption from renewables by 2030. The EU is currently the global leader in ocean energy technologies.With the call for grants, the European Commission wanted to help future deployments by de-risking anddocumenting the licensing process.More specific, the objectives of the projects were to:1. Increase environmental data and knowledge of impacts of ocean energy devices2. Improve modelling of potential impacts3. Build capacity among ocean energy developers and Member States’ authorities4. Feed the public debate and inform stakeholdersBackground:The Ocean Energy Strategic Roadmap “Building Ocean Energy for Europe” published in November2016 identified de-risking environmental consenting as a key challenge.Developers’ application for consent requires a sound understanding of environmental assessment andprocesses applied to ocean energy. However, deployments of ocean energy devices are without precedentand there is limited empirical data that could inform the regulatory process. Obtaining consent for anemerging technology such as ocean energy can be time consuming and costly. This also entails the needfor public information, consultation and support. Consenting processes, thus, need to be anticipated, tai-lored and proportionate.Close environmental monitoring and impact assessment and an early understanding of these aspects willbenefit the current and future deployments of the ocean energy sector as a whole, by putting in place aguiding framework within which to establish protocol for regulatory assessments, licensing, control andmonitoring. This will help to steer the transition from research and development to commercial deploy-ment of new technologies.B – (Legislative) Developments at the EU level with regard to all BSPC members 64III. Infrastructural aspects with regard to maritime policy1. Maritime Spatial PlanningMarine spatial planning at global levelHuman wellbeing and prosperity are inextricably linked to the good health of the ocean, seas, coasts andrelated resources. Both through their conservation and sustainable use. Unfortunately, marine ecosystemsare facing increasingly significant stress from climate change, habitat destruction and overexploitation,threatening the economic activities that rely upon these resources. At the same time, intensified humanactivities in coastal and marine waters lack, to achieve sustainability, the required integrated planning anddecision-making, including transboundary coordination.The expanding use of the ocean space shows the increase of conflicts: amongst uses but also in betweenuses and nature. This requires specific plans to regulate and reduce human impacts.Management approaches of the various resources, as well as environmental management bodies, contin-ue today to be sectoral and largely limit their actions to regulatory control. Existing environmental poli-cies for the conservation of nature, water and the marine environment address the diverse and complexnature of coastal areas and the marine environment; however, in many countries, planning policies havenot yet developed a common spatial governance framework for these areas. Government actions tend tofocus on visible problems of immediate concern and, therefore, are geared towards responding to environ-mental crises.As a comprehensive approach to managing uses of the sea, marine spatial planning (MSP) is a public pro-cess of analysing and allocating the spatial and temporal distribution of human activities in marine areas.All this, in order to achieve ecological, economic and social objectives that are usually specified through apolitical process.It plays a key role in supporting the development of sectors that have a high potential for sustainable jobsand economic growth linked with maritime activities (blue growth/ blue economy) while highlighting theneed to consider climate change effects on the durability of sectorial approaches within existing blue econ-omy strategies.B – (Legislative) Developments at the EU level with regard to all BSPC members 65Countries have public and private institutions with the potential to contribute to this management ap-proach for blue economy; still, institutional differences confuse powers and functions, making integratedmanagement a difficult task.By encouraging the creation of adequate coastal and ocean governance frameworks, ensuring ecosys-tem-based approach principles and putting them into practice, MSP enables the development of tools toassess the cumulative impacts and pressures of human activities in the sea through the improvement ofknowledge, data and information on the land-sea interactions.In turn, this ensures that the use of marine resources is ecologically sustainable and applying measures toreach good environmental status of the coastal and marine environment. It is possible to implement thisapproach regionally, nationally and locally through an inclusive and transparent intergovernmental pro-cess on sustainable development goals that is open to all stakeholders.A Roadmap to Implement by 2030Based on successful experiences of cross-border and transboundary MSP projects, UNESCO’s Intergov-ernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC-UNESCO) and the European Commission’s Directo-rate-General for Maritime Affairs and Fisheries (DG MARE) have launched an MSProadmap, a joint in-itiative to support MSP internationally for the sustainable development of the blue economy.More specifically, it aims at improving planning of sustainable economic activities at sea by promoting theestablishment of MSP plans and creating an environment conducive to transnational cooperation throughthe development of international guidance for MSP. The objectives of this roadmap are being implement-ed through a project called MSPglobal and an international forum to share MSP practices under imple-mentation worldwide (MSPforum).MSPglobal will build on IOC-UNESCO’s leading work in the field, with the objective to triple the ma-rine area benefiting from MSP effectively implemented by 2030 and cover 30% of maritime areas undernational jurisdictions.MSPglobal will also improve the understanding and governance of large marine ecosystems and regionalseas, transboundary in nature, as harbours of biodiversity and providers of ecosystem services, includingfood security, shoreline protection, carbon sequestration and storage as well as recreational opportunities.B – (Legislative) Developments at the EU level with regard to all BSPC members 66The initiative provides the context for active and effective participation of policy-makers, scientists, theprivate sector, civil society organisations and other stakeholders to improve governance at multiple levelsand achieve an ecosystem-based approach in support of the sustainable blue economy.Both marine spatial plans and the blue economy are initiatives led by public authorities to further harnessthe potential of ocean, seas and coastal areas for jobs, value and sustainability, as a response to the globalchanges which affect national interests. A key component in the process of using marine plans as a frame-work for sustainable blue economy initiatives is the knowledge and the access to official, transparent andaccurate data and information with the aim of providing legal certainty and security, but also a transpar-ent way to keep stakeholders and citizens engaged and informed.The MSPglobal Initiative is co-financed by the European Maritime and Fisheries Funds of the EuropeanUnion. It is designed to support the implementation of the Joint Roadmap to accelerate Marine/Mari-time Spatial Planning processes worldwide, adopted by DG MARE and IOC-UNESCO as part of theconclusions of the 2nd International Conference on MSP, jointly organised in Paris in March 2017.International guidelinesPlanning human activities at sea so they happen safely and sustainably is a pre-requisite to good oceangovernance. This requires a high level of coordination, not just within a same country but also across bor-ders. This is why since 2017, the European Commission and Intergovernmental Oceanographic Com-mission of UNESCO (IOC-UNESCO) have been working together to develop transboundary maritimespatial planning. In November 2018, as a follow-up action to their Joint Roadmap to accelerate Mari-time/ Marine Spatial Planning (MSP) processes worldwide, the two institutions have launched MSP-Global, a new three-year long initiative that will call on regional experts to develop guidance on interna-tional cross-border MSP.By 2030, the results of MSPGlobal, combined with the other nine actions of the Joint Roadmap, are ex-pected to triple the area of territorial waters that benefit from an effectively implemented MSP system.Title: Supporting internationally accepted maritime spatial planning guidanceDuration: from 01.11.2018 to 31.10.2021 (36 months)EC contribution: EUR 1,400,000Total cost: 1,750,000Partners: DG MARE and IOC-UNESCOB – (Legislative) Developments at the EU level with regard to all BSPC members 672. EU invests in transport projectsUnder the EU Green Deal, several transport projects are funded by the EU, for instance the constructionand operation of an LNG terminal at Rostock harbour (19.4 million Euros) and the extension of the cen-tral Baltic transport connection between Helsinki and Lübeck (15.3 million Euros).3. EU seeks entry into force of world-wide agreement on safety of fishing vesselsThe EU encouraged the ratification of the 2012 Cape Town Agreement on safety of fishing vessels at theMinisterial Conference on Safe and Legal Fishing, hosted by Spain jointly with the International Mari-time Organization in Torremolinos, Spain on 21-23 October 2019.The agreement will contribute to improved ocean governance by putting in place basic international safe-ty requirements for fishing vessels. This will also help to counter illegal, unregulated and unreported fish-ing as poor safety standards are a hallmark of vessels whose operators under-report catch or fish illegallyor minimize costs by all means, infringing law, endangering their crew and compromising the security oftheir vessel.The 2012 Cape Town Agreement requires a total of 22 ratifying countries with an aggregate total fishingfleet of 3,600 vessels in order for the agreement to come into force. In October 2019, a total of elevencountries with an aggregate fleet of 2,400 had ratified the convention, including six EU countries - Bel-gium, Denmark, France, Germany, the Netherlands and Spain.The European Commission sees an urgent need to establish a global framework. The ratification of the2012 Cape Town Agreement would create a global level playing field with the following benefits:• An upgrade of safety for people working on board of fishing vessels and the fishing vessel sector,which has one of the worst fatality records of any industry.• Supporting the fight against illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing by establishinginternational safety standards for fishing vessels.• An opportunity to update the current technical requirements in the Agreement to reflectdevelopments in safety management.B – (Legislative) Developments at the EU level with regard to all BSPC members 68In the EU, as elsewhere, fishing is still a high-risk profession. In 2017, 203 injuries were recorded on fish-ing vessels and 13 fishermen lost their lives due to incidents at sea. A significant improvement comparedto the 60 fatalities in 2014. Improving safety at sea is an essential part of the EU’s commitment to oceangovernance and to the wellbeing of our 150,000 fishers and their families. By 15 November 2019, MShad to comply with an EU directive transposing the ILO Work in Fishing Convention. The EuropeanCommission is also taking positive measures in all sea basins.4. EMODnet BathymetryEMODnet’s new World Base Layer Service provides a fast and easy access to worldwide bathymetric in-formation, enabling marine knowledge users including industry, scientists, coastal managers, students andthe general public, to access high-resolution representations of seabed features from their own computer.The new service provides the highest resolved topographic and bathymetric worldwide layout current-ly available with land and sea integration matching the OpenStreetMap coastline representation. Thisnew service is freely accessible from the EMODnet Bathymetry portal (https://tiles.emodnet-bathymetry.eu/preview.html), for integrating into different applications, along with guidance documentation and ademo viewer to zoom in on details.B – (Legislative) Developments at the EU level with regard to all BSPC members 695. ConsultationsSea and inland waterway transport - passengers rights (evaluation)Consultation period: 03 July 2020 - 02 October 2020The Commission will evaluate the regulation of rights of passengers when travelling by sea and inland wa-terway. The purpose is to review, more than 6 years after its implementation, how effectively the currentRegulation is applied, whether it is delivering the projected results and how it responds to various chal-lenges.Low-emission vehicles – improving the EU’s refuelling/recharging infrastructureConsultation period: 6. April 2020 – 29. Juni 2020This initiative sets requirements for greatly expanding the EU’s network of recharging and refuelling sta-tions for alternative vehicle fuels – mainly electric batteries, natural gas (CNG/LNG) and hydrogen.The goal is to install a sufficient number of points in all countries that are easy to access and use.This is needed to encourage people to use low- and zero-emission vehicles in much greater numbers thancurrently – one of the EU’s climate objectives in the new European Green Deal.B – (Legislative) Developments at the EU level with regard to all BSPC members 70IV. Environmental aspects with regard tomaritime policy including climate protection1. Climate ProtectionIn 2019, temperature in the world’s oceans reached the highest level since the beginning of measurement,researchers wrote in their contribution in the research magazine Advances in Atmospheric Sciences. Accord-ing to 14 researchers from eleven institutes from different countries, the warming of the oceans is acceler-ating due to climate change. Since the 1970s, more than 90 percent of global warming has been impact-ing on the oceans, while only four percent has had an effect on land surface and the atmosphere.In December 2019, the EU stressed the need to address the impacts of climate change on oceans at UNGeneral Assembly. The latter adopted on 10 December two resolutions on Oceans and Law of the Seasand on Sustainable Fisheries. In this context, the EU called for urgent, resolute and ambitious interna-tional action by all states in line with agreed commitments to counter the impacts of climate change onthe oceans such as ocean acidification, ocean-warming, reduced fisheries catch potential and rising sea lev-els.The EU regretted that there was no agreement on reflecting the findings and recommendations of theSpecial Report of the Intergovernmental Panel Climate Change (IPCC) on Oceans and the Cryospherein these resolutions as suggested by the EU and numerous other delegations including Small Island Statesand African, Caribbean and Pacific countries. For this reason, the EU Member States (MS) have chosennot to co-sponsor the Sustainable Fisheries resolution, unlike in previous years.Nevertheless, the EU welcomed the fact that the resolution on sustainable fisheries made progress on anumber of key issues, in particular the social dimension of fisheries, which is a longstanding EU priority.In line with commitments to ensure decent work for all, the EU proposed measures to promote equalityand the recognition of the role of women in the fisheries and aquaculture sectors as well as improved la-bour conditions and safety aboard fishing vessels. The EU encouraged ratification of the above-mentionedILO Work in Fishing Convention and the Cape Town Agreement by all states. The EU also supported thework of the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) with regard to Social Responsibility to tacklelabour right violations and human rights abuses, which are known to occur along the fisheries value chain.B – (Legislative) Developments at the EU level with regard to all BSPC members 7125 years after its entry into force, the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) re-mains the overarching legal framework for ocean governance. The EU continues to encourage all UNstates to ratify it to achieve universal participation. In addition, the EU looks forward to the finalisationof negotiations of the new implementing agreement for the conservation and sustainable use of marinebiodiversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction. The finalisation of the new implementing agreementwould ensure that the Convention is able to meet current challenges.The Special Report on the Ocean and Cryosphere in a Changing Climate by the UN’s IntergovernmentalPanel on Climate Change (IPCC), approved in September 2019, highlighted that since 1970, the «globalocean has taken up more than 90% of the excess heat in the climate system.» The rate of ocean warminghas «more than doubled» since 1993. Surface acidification has increased as the oceans absorb more carbondioxide.Healthy oceans are a priority in the fight against climate change. To highlight the role of science in poli-cy-making and the opportunities provided by oceans in tackling the climate challenge, the EuropeanCommission organised an ‘EU Ocean Day’ on 7 December 2019 during the COP 25, the UN ClimateChange Conference, which was taking place in Madrid between 2 and 13 December 2019.In one of his first international engagements, European Commissioner for environment, oceans and fish-eries, Virginijus Sinkevičius, attended the climate conference in Madrid (COP 25) to push for more in-ternational action on oceans and climate change. “Fighting climate change and protecting marine life biodi-versity is a centrepiece of the EU’s ocean policy. Due to climate change, our oceans are facing serious challenges,which require an urgent and comprehensive response. But oceans are also a part of the solution. The conferenceis an opportunity for mobilising support for coherent international action and better ocean governance”, saidCommissioner Sinkevičius.In November, the EU Member States adopted conclusions on oceans and seas, stressing that climatechange is a direct and existential threat to life in the oceans and seas globally. MS called for increased ac-tion at all levels of government to protect marine and coastal ecosystems. Climate change is havingfar-reaching impact, not least on fisheries. Shifts in species distribution, in migration patterns and inabundance, creates important challenges for sustainable fisheries management at both national and inter-national level.According to the EU Commission’s climate action progress report, the EU has begun economic modern-ization toward climate neutrality. The EU, responsible for approximately 10 % of global output, hasB – (Legislative) Developments at the EU level with regard to all BSPC members 72reduced greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 23 % between 1990 and 2018; but the potential of the EU’sshipping sector to play a significant role in this regard still has to be more consequently fulfilled, also inview of rising emissions attributed to the sector in the past.Since 2019, steps forward in this direction or against can be monitored: based on the EU regulation onthe system for monitoring, reporting and verification, shipping enterprises have to submit an annualemission report to the EU Commission and flag state. This goes for each ship that has been active duringthe year within the European Economic Area via the THETIS MRV system.The branch must, due to longtime use of ships, already today prepare and keep in mind these develop-ments. In its proposal for a future multiannual budget of the EU (2021-2027), and in line with the Paris Agree-ment and the commitment to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, the Commission hadset an ambitious goal for climate mainstreaming across all EU programmes, with a target of 25% of allEU expenditure contributing towards climate objectives.At last year’s “Our Ocean Conference” in Oslo (see section A), the EU announced 22 new ocean commit-ments, worth EUR 540 million. They included targeted action to support climate change adaptation inhighly sensitive marine regions, like the Pacific Islands and the Coral Triangle, advance climate monitor-ing and research for example in Arctic and Antarctic, and promote the transition to a low carbon emis-sion economy.2. Critical status of the European eelThe European eel stock has been in critical condition for over a decade. The EU Commission (EC) haspublished an evaluation of the implementation of the eel regulation, 12 years after its entry into force.The eel regulation remains an important instrument in helping the European eel stock to recover. It en-sures the management of eel in all its life stages and addresses both fisheries and non-fisheries related hu-man impact. But despite noteworthy progress in reducing fishing efforts and a concerted attempt to de-velop a pan-EU management framework, the status of the European eel remains critical. The silver eel es-capement is still well below the target of 40% biomass that would have existed if no human influence hadimpacted the stock. Whilst restocking works in some EU member states, not all have achieved theirB – (Legislative) Developments at the EU level with regard to all BSPC members 73restocking targets. Their annual reporting on glass eel prices is incomplete. Many countries fund glass eelstocking through the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund (EMFF).Furthermore, non-fisheries related mortality has not declined significantly over the last decade. This facthas received insufficient focus in the eel management plans and related actions.Although the eel regulation offers the necessary framework to help restore the stock, its recovery is still farfrom certain. It is widely recognised that the recovery of the European eel will take many decades, giventhe long life-span of the species.Background:In 2007, the EU adopted the ‘eel regulation’ which provided a framework for the recovery of the stock in thelong-term. In an effort to protect the stock and ensure its sustainable use, EU countries established eel man-agement plans for the river basins with significant eel habitats. The plans provided various measures to:• ensure that at least 40% of adult eels escape to the sea• limit professional and recreational fisheries• make it easier for fish to migrate through the rivers• restock suitable inland waters with young eels3. HELCOM ActivitiesAs of 1 July 2020, Germany has taken over the chair of HELCOM from Finland for a period of two years.Among the focus areas of the German chairmanship are among others the update of the Baltic Sea ActionPlan and the strengthening of marine biodiversity through a more effective management of Marine Pro-tected Areas and of species and habitat protection. In addition, solving the issue of munitions dumped inthe Baltic Sea (see map below, source: European Atlas of the Sea6) through joint practical action, based onthe common responsibility for the basin, and increasing the visibility of HELCOM’s work are priorities6 https://ec.europa.eu/maritimeaffairs/atlas/maritime_atlas/#lang=EN;p=w;bkgd=15;theme=935:0.75,775:1;c=1972374.283467845,7469309.027585513;z=6, access: 30 July 2020.B – (Legislative) Developments at the EU level with regard to all BSPC members 74of the chairmenship. The issue of dumped munitions, eroding since about 75 years and increasingly emit-ting poisonous substances, needs a strong alliance for an ecolically sound, joint removal programme.A particularity of its chairmanship, Germany will, in addition to the Chairperson Dr. Lilian Busse, alsohave two Vice-Chairs hailing from the two German federal states bordering the Baltic Sea, Schleswig-Hol-stein (Johannes Oelerich) and Mecklenburg-Vorpommern (Andreas Röpke). During their respectivevice-chairmenships, Schleswigh-Holstein and Mecklenburg-Vorpommern will complementarily concen-trate on the mitigation of climate change and its effects (coastal defence measures against erosion of sandybeaches and clifflines), combatting eutrophication and ghost nets, developing an ambitious HELCOMscience agenda and harmonizing work in the context of implementing the marine strategy framework di-rective.The next HELCOM Ministerial Meeting is planned for October 2021, which will update the Baltic SeaAction Plan (BSAP).B – (Legislative) Developments at the EU level with regard to all BSPC members 75The updated “HELCOM Second Holistic Assessment of the Ecosystem Health of the Baltic Sea” (HO-LAS II) report dates from mid-2018.The HOLAS II project gives an update on the overall state of ecosystem health in the Baltic Sea. The as-sessment follows up on the goals of the Baltic Sea Action Plan (BSAP), and is developed so that the resultscan support reporting under the EU Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD) by those Contract-ing Parties to the Helsinki Convention that are also EU member states. The project ran from 2014-2018.4. Europe needs to better protect its seas and oceansEurope needs to better protect its seas and oceans, according to a Commission report on the above-men-tioned Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD) of 25 June 2020. Although the EU legislativeframework for marine protection is comprehensive, excessive nutrient pollution, underwater noise, plas-tic waste and unsustainable fishing practices continue to threaten the marine environment. This is shownby the “Marine News” of the European Environment Agency published on 25 June 2020.Commissioner Virginijus Sinkevičius’ responsible for Environment, Oceans and Fisheries, announced areview of the Marine Strategy Framework Directive to identify its successes and weaknesses.The report shows that almost half of Europe’s coastal waters are affected by severe eutrophication. WhileEU legislation on chemicals has led to a reduction in pollutants, most marine species have seen an increasein plastic and plastic chemical residues. Fishing pressure has decreased in the North-East Atlantic and theBaltic Sea, but the coastal seabed is still subject to significant physical disturbance throughout Europe.B – (Legislative) Developments at the EU level with regard to all BSPC members 765. ConsultationsAdapting to climate change – EU strategyConsultation period: 14 May 2020 - 20 August 2020Despite measures to mitigate its effects, climate change is already having serious consequences in Europeand worldwide. Therefore, as part of its Green Deal, the Commission is launching a new strategy to helpthe EU adapt to the effects. It will focus on encouraging investment in eco-friendly solutions, cli-mate-proofing the economy, making key infrastructure more resilient, adding climate factors to risk man-agement practice and stepping up prevention and preparedness.Waste shipments – revision of EU rulesConsultation period: 7. Mai 2020 – 30. Juli 2020Waste transport can involve hazardous materials that are harmful to human health and the environment.The EU therefore has rules in place on waste shipments (Regulation 1013/2006).As announced in the European Green Deal, the Commission intends to review the EU rules on wasteshipments. The purpose of this review is to ensure how to facilitate that EU policy on waste shipmentspromotes recycling in the EU to support the transition to the circular economy. The review will also ex-plore ways to reduce the export of waste, for example through a better inspection system, measures againstillegal shipments and measures to avoid potential environment-and-health-related adverse effects on theenvironment and public health caused by shipments of waste to third countries outside the EU.Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conferencewww.bspc.netBSPC SecretariatSchlossgartenallee 1519061 SchwerinGermany