Fisheries Monitoring, Control and Surveillance

Fisheries monitoring, control, and surveillance (MCS) is key to ensure compliance with fisheries regulations and promoting sustainable fishing practices. Monitoring involves the collection of data on fishing activities, including catch, effort and fishing locations, through methods such as logbooks, electronic monitoring (e.g. vessel monitoring systems, VMS), and observer programs. Control measures focus on enforcing fisheries regulations and include activities such as at-sea and port inspections and the use of satellite technology to detect and deter illegal fishing, whereas surveillance involves use of different types of observation platforms, such as Fishery Patrol Vessels (FPVs), to ensure compliance with regulatory controls. MCS efforts using a risk-based assessment, help prevent overfishing, illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing, and protect sensitive habitats. It also supports accurate data collection, scientific research, and evidence-based decision-making.

MRAG Europe has a wide experience of designing and implementing fisheries monitoring, control and surveillance programmes as well as providing research into issues regarding IUU fishing. This includes scientific and compliance focussed fishery observer programmes such as the Mediterranean ICCAT bluefin tuna (BFT) programme in European Union waters. The size and scope of observer programmes has ranged from the supply of an individual observer on a scientific vessel, to servicing a fleet of a large number of offshore vessels and farms, requiring substantial logistic support and management. We also provide independent reviews of observer programmes and remote electronic monitoring (REM) systems, including analysis of VMS and logbook data.