Council regulations on fishing opportunities adopted during the second half of each year
do not include a total allowable catche (TAC) for anchovy in the Bay of Biscay because of
the different annual cycle followed by the biology of this stock and the scientific advice
estimating the spawning stock biomass. For this reason, a specific anchovy TAC is set
around July each year.
For the anchovy stock in the Bay of Biscay, the advice from the Scientific, Technical and
Economic Committee for Fisheries (STECF) of July 2012 is based on a fishing season
running from 1 July 2011 until 30 June 2012.
The following table sets out the indicative value of the TAC for anchovy in the Bay of
Biscay compared with those for 2011:
The Council adopted this proposal as soon as possible in order to allow fishermen to plan
their activities for the new fishing season. The regulation 716/2011 established the TAC
for the fishery exploiting this stock applicable from 1 July 2011 until 30 June 2012. The
TAC and its allocation to the Member States concerned (Spain and France) had to be fixed
for the next 12 months.
The Commission presented in 2009 a proposal for a regulation establishing a long-term
plan for the anchovy stock in the Bay of Biscay and the fisheries exploiting that stock.
