Marine Stewardship Council launches this report that offers solutions to the problems of overexploitation and vulnerability of the Mediterranean Sea.
Several experts from ICM-CSIC, WWF Spain, and MSC will discuss the achievements obtained with this project in an official event, parallel to the UN Ocean Decade Conference 2024, which will be held on April 9 in Barcelona.
The Marine Stewardship Council (MSC), a non-profit organization whose mission is to end overfishing, today publishes the MedPath impact report, which compiles the progress made in the Mediterranean to promote sustainable fishing. MSC works with representatives from the scientific world and the fishing sector to establish a globally recognized benchmark for sustainable fishing. While the organization is best known for its blue seal, its MedPath project, which is being carried out in Spain, France, Italy, and Greece, together with collaborators such as WWF, is helping fisheries that do not yet qualify for certification under the MSC Fisheries Standard, but are working to improve their ecological performance.
In the words of the MedPath coordinator and MSC Fisheries Manager for the Mediterranean in Spain, Julio Agujetas:“Our objective is to promote sustainable fishing practices in the Mediterranean, which is one of the most overexploited regions in the world. Together with our collaborators, we have identified which areas need improvement and have developed specific action plans that fisheries can implement. Among the achievements the report highlights: the development of a new computer application (app) to improve the collection and analysis of data on fish populations north of the Alboran Sea in Spain; In France, we have contributed to the introduction of new fishing regulations for the dentex and sea urchin fisheries; in Italy we have developed a methodology for fisheries with limited data (1); and in Greece evidence has been collected that will allow scientists to assess the health of octopus fisheries.”
The Mediterranean Sea
The Mediterranean Sea represents only 0.7% of the world's ocean surface, yet it is home to 7.5% and 18%, respectively, of marine fauna and flora species. Currently, numerous threats, such as overfishing, pollution, climate change, and the spread of invasive species, are causing widespread degradation of marine ecosystems and reducing biodiversity. According to the General Mediterranean Fisheries Commission (2), the Mediterranean fishing sector generates 183,000 direct jobs, has 84,000 vessels, and the average total catch amounts to 1 063 200 tonnes, which represents an annual income of about 2.8 billion euros. 58% of commercial stocks are fished beyond the biological limits of sustainability and although in the last decade, fishing pressure decreased by 31% it is still twice as high as sustainability levels.
MSC in the Mediterranean: a path towards sustainability
MSC has developed the Pathway to Sustainability program to help fisheries improve their ecological performance and work towards meeting the MSC Fisheries Standard. Through its projects at the local level, the program offers a set of instruments, training materials and a framework that will allow them to improve to achieve sustainability (2).
To facilitate the implementation of the Pathway program in the Mediterranean, MedPath was created in 2020 to improve coordination between the different MSC Pathway initiatives in the region. MedPath includes the following projects: Medfish in Spain and France, BluFish in Italy and HellasFish in Greece. MedPath's objective is to support fisheries in their transition towards sustainability, leveraging the commitment of different stakeholders at national and regional levels.
Through MedPath, 5,175 fisheries have been identified in the region, of which 152 have been analyzed. Of these, 34 were pre-assessed against the MSC Fisheries Standard to identify areas for improvement and action plans have been developed. tailored for 29 of them, with the aim of addressing the deficiencies that were detected in the pre-evaluations. All of this has led to the implementation of 47 specific measures aimed at increasing the sustainability of fishing practices. Among these measures are:
In Spain: development of the DatAlborán computer tool, as a result of the joint effort of fishermen, NGOs, and scientists to improve the collection and analysis of data on fisheries and fish populations north of the Alboran Sea.
In France: contribution to the development of new fishing regulations for the Corsican dentex fishery and the Gulf of Lion sea urchin fishery.
In Italy: development of a methodology that allows evaluating common octopus populations.
In northern Greece: improvements in data collection to address gaps and lack of information by conducting underwater observations and video recordings on board pulp vessels to monitor potential interactions of fishing gear with other species and habitats.
The Medfish project began in 2015 and involves fisheries working around zones 1, 2, 5, 6, 7, and 8 of the General Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean (GFCM).
MedPath in Spain: the Medfish project
WWF and the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) jointly launched the Medfish Project in 2015 to carry out a comprehensive and rigorous analysis of French and Spanish Mediterranean fisheries, using the MSC Fisheries Standard as a benchmark for sustainability. This project is part of the MSC and WWF's commitment to the sustainability of Mediterranean Sea fisheries and, therefore, aims to be a source of inspiration for similar initiatives in other countries in the region. The project first analyzed 100 fisheries in Spain and France. Additionally, between both countries, 19 fisheries were assessed against the MSC Standard for Sustainable Fisheries to identify potential areas for improvement. Action plans were then developed to address the deficiencies found and, currently, project collaborators help fisheries that are interested in applying these improvement plans.
At the moment, fishermen's and producers' organizations, national and regional administrative authorities, major research organizations, and local NGOs are collaborating on the implementation of six Medfish action plans that address deficiencies in fisheries sustainability...
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The Marine Stewardship Council (MSC), a non-profit organization whose mission is to end overfishing, 
In the words of the 
MSC has developed the Pathway to Sustainability program to help fisheries improve their ecological performance and work towards meeting the MSC Fisheries Standard. Through its projects at the local level, the program offers a set of instruments, training materials and a framework that will allow them to improve to achieve sustainability (2).
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