Rationale of the working group
The Demersal Working Group (DWG) is one of the engines of the North Sea RAC, dealing with demersal fisheries issues.Since the inception of the RAC in 2004 the DWG has played a dynamic role in developing advice and policy for adoption by the Executive Committee (Excom) In 2006, the Flatfish working group was integrated into the DWG and joined Monkfish, Saithe,Nephrops and Cod/Haddock/Whiting as a development group for long term management (LTM) planning as the major challenge which faces LTM is the mixed nature of many fisheries in the North Sea. The guiding principles of the DWG have been to balance the economic viability of offshore and onshore fishing businesses with progress towards sustainable fishing and to build in a much greater involvement of fishermen in the management decisions that affect their livelihoods.
The DWG has continued with the groundbreaking work of the North Sea Commission Fisheries Parnership by offering a forum for co-operation between fishermen and the ICES scientists. This has ensured that the DWG has been pivotal in developing the consensus positions which the North Sea RAC hs been able to provide to the European Commission. Read the rest of this entry »