Online Event: Advancing progress towards the European Green Deal: OECMs’ implementation in the fisheries sector

Tuesday 19 October 2021, 16:00 – 18:00 CEST

Hosted by MEP Pierre Karleskind

Chair of the Committee on Fisheries (PECH), European Parliament

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Other Effective area-based Conservation Measures (OECMs), together with Marine Protected Areas (MPAs), are an important element in the future development and implementation of the European Green Deal and EU Biodiversity Strategy. Additionally, OECMs have been included under the current Target 3 of the draft Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework of the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), while CBD Decision 14/8 calls for OECMs’ mainstreaming into sectors, including fisheries. Guidance is provided in the Decision and supplementary guidance has been developed by IUCN-WCPA. The implementation of OECMs in the marine capture fisheries’ sector has been addressed by the IUCN Fisheries Expert Group (FEG) (Rice et al., 2018; Garcia et al, 2019; Garcia et al, 2020). The available elements of guidance for OECMs’ identification in that sector have been recently tested in the North Atlantic, in an ICES-FEG Workshop (15-24/03/2021). As a result, the present event – hosted under the umbrella of the European Parliament Intergroup on ‘Climate Change, Biodiversity and Sustainable Development’ – will briefly present the results of the workshop and inform the European institutions on the state of play regarding OECMs in fisheries. The discussion will start with reactions from selected panelists and will be followed by a Q&A session with the audience.

Final Agenda:

16:00 – 16:10: Welcome remarks: MEP Pierre Karleskind

16:10 – 16:20: Introduction to OECMs: Joe Appiott, UN Convention on Biological Diversity

16:20 – 16:30: The use of OECMs in fisheries: Serge Garcia, IUCN Fisheries Expert Group

16:30 – 16:40: Outcomes of the ICES-FEG workshop: Ellen Kenchington, Chair, ICES-FEG Workshop

16:40 – 16:50: OECMs in FAO and future plans: Imen Meliane, FAO consultant

16:50 – 17:00: Vedran Nikolić, Policy Coordinator, DG ENV, European Commission

17:00 – 17:10: Kenneth Patterson, Senior Expert on CFP and environmental issues, DG MARE, European Commission

17:10 – 17:50: Q&As with the audience, moderated by Ernesto Peñas Lado, Member, IUCN/CEM/FEG

17:50 – 18:00: Closing remarks: Ernesto Peñas Lado, Member, IUCN/CEM/FEG