Sardines and anchovies risk disappearing from the Adriatic

Environmental watchdog Greenpeace has warned that stocks of sardines and anchovies are disappearing from the Adriatic as a result of poor fishery management and called on the EU to guarantee that fishing practices are sustainable. In the report 'Blue Gold in Italy' published in the September 2012 edition of 'Ocean Inquirer', Greenpeace shines the spotlight on the ports of Chioggia, one of the largest fishing ports in the Mediterranean, and Pila di Porto Tolle in Veneto, which together "supply a considerable proportion of the Italian sardine and anchovy market all year round" and also "export catches to other countries". Scientific data show a decline in these fish populations in the north and central Adriatic over the last 40 years, while the Italian government has allowed pressure on these waters to rise by increasing the number and capacity of authorised boats and issuing 'experimental' licences, the report says. Greenpeace calls on European governments and the European parliament to draw up legislation to ensure that fish stocks can be naturally replenished.