Stock assessment for scallops
Evidence requirement R039: Stock assessment for scallops
Documents
Details
Requirement R039
Provide a scallop stock assessment to support fisheries management.
Requirement detail
Scallop fishing is not a widely managed activity. With the exception of effort restrictions for 15m and over vessels in area VII, there is limited understanding of fisheries behaviour and whether fishing activities are at a sustainable level.
Work to identify current available scallop stocks in English waters and how this has changed through time will help improve forecasting of stock behaviour. The project should include bringing together historic fisheries behaviour with knowledge on fisheries decision making, where potentially the fishery is being driven by external factors beyond stock availability.
Fisheries are often monitored and managed against maximum sustainable yields (MSY). Understanding MSY, with associated confidence on the evidence base it was calculated from, for the English scallop fishery, will assist the MMO with ongoing management decision making.
MMO use
Fisheries management: Continued improvement to the delivery of legal obligations.
External interest:
Natural England, Deltares, Cefas
Delivery target:
2019, Q2