Fisheries & Biodiversity Conservation - Roadmap to Enhanced Policy Coherence

The European Union has set ambitious targets through the European Green Deal and the EU Biodiversity Strategy for 2030, aiming to reverse biodiversity loss and ensure the sustainable use of natural resources. Healthy marine ecosystems are central to these goals, playing a critical role in climate regulation, food security, and the livelihoods of coastal communities. However, the EU's marine environment continues to face significant pressures, including from unsustainable fishing practices. While both fisheries policy, primarily governed through the Common Fisheries Policy, and biodiversity policy, anchored in instruments like the EU Biodiversity Strategy, the Marine Strategy Framework Directive and the Habitats and Birds Directives, seek to promote sustainable marine resource use, the sectoral policies operate under distinct legal mandates and governance structures, creating challenges for coherent action at the EU, regional sea, and national levels. This roadmap examines policy coherence between fisheries and biodiversity policies in the EU, identifying key governance and implementation challenges. Drawing on case studies and stakeholder insights from the Mediterranean Sea, it outlines practical recommendations for improving policy coherence and ultimately advancing both a sustainable fishing industry and a healthy marine environment.