Unsustainable and environmentally harmful aspects of industrial fish farming
19.4.2024
Question for written answer E-001169/2024
to the Commission
Rule 138
Petros Kokkalis (Verts/ALE)
Through the European Maritime, Fisheries and Aquaculture Fund, the EU aims to develop sustainable and competitive aquaculture programmes that contribute to food security[1]. Yet more and more evidence is coming to light on the unsustainability and environmentally damaging aspects of industrial fish farming. For example, studies have linked the following problems with fish farms: an increase in harmful algal blooms[2], negative impacts on critical Posidonia oceanica meadows[3], large-scale fish die-offs[4], the use of the carcinogen formaldehyde[5], fish farms leaving large amounts of plastics behind in the water[6], and high volumes of wild-caught fish being used to feed farmed fish[7].
In the light of the above:
- 1.If the Commission’s goal is to invest in sustainable aquaculture projects, what are the criteria it uses to measure the sustainability of these projects?
- 2.What review process does it require to ensure that the projects that the EU Member States select meet EU standards and are carried out in line with the EU’s requirements?
- 3.With many European countries scaling up their industrial fish farming sectors, will the Commission plan a review of acceptable practices to ensure the highest level of compliance with environmental and sustainability requirements?
Submitted:19.4.2024
- [1] https://oceans-and-fisheries.ec.europa.eu/document/download/add11fe0-45ca-4ff0-afd2-f10708d8daad_en?filename=emfaf-faq_en.pdf.
- [2] https://www.mdpi.com/1424-2818/13/8/396.
- [3] https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0025326X08003160.
- [4] https://www.newscientist.com/article/2421227-salmon-farms-are-increasingly-being-hit-by-mass-die-offs/.
- [5] https://theferret.scot/formaldehyde-used-200-times-fish-farm-industry/.
- [6] https://www.ozon-ngo.gr/news_det.php?id=144.
- [7] https://ig.ft.com/supermarket-salmon/.