Marine Stewardship Council fisheries assessments WESTERN ASTURIAS OCTOPUS TRAPS FISHERY OF ARTISANAL COFRADÍAS Public domain illustration from: Comingio Merculiano (1845-1915) ANNOUNCEMENT COMMENT DRAFT REPORT NOVEMBER 2020 Bureau Veritas Certification Holding SAS Conformity Assessment Body (CAB) Contact: [email protected] ; macarena.garcia@ bureauveritas.com Angel F. González González, Gonzalo Macho Rivero , José Assessment team in the ACDR Ríos and Macarena García Asociación de armadores de la pesquería de pulpo con Fishery client certificado de sostenibilidad (ARPESOS) Assessment Type First Reassessment 1 Contents 1 Contents __________________________________________________________________________ 2 2 Glossary ___________________________________________________________________________ 4 3 Executive summary __________________________________________________________________ 5 4 Report details ______________________________________________________________________ 7 4.1 Authorship and peer review details ________________________________________________________ 7 4.2 Version details _________________________________________________________________________ 9 5 Unit(s) of Assessment and Certification and results overview _______________________________ 10 5.1 Unit(s) of Assessment and Unit(s) of Certification ____________________________________________ 10 5.1.1 Unit(s) of Assessment __________________________________________________________________________ 10 5.1.2 Unit(s) of Certification __________________________________________________________________________ 11 5.2 Assessment results overview ____________________________________________________________ 11 5.2.1 Determination, formal conclusion and agreement ___________________________________________________ 11 5.2.2 Principle level scores ___________________________________________________________________________ 11 5.2.3 Summary of conditions _________________________________________________________________________ 12 5.2.4 Recommendations _____________________________________________________________________________ 12 6 Traceability and eligibility ___________________________________________________________ 13 6.1 Eligibility date ________________________________________________________________________ 13 6.2 Traceability within the fishery ___________________________________________________________ 13 6.2.1 Description of the tracking, tracing and segregation systems within the fishery ____________________________ 13 6.2.2 Determination of risk associated to traceability factors prior to entering CoC _____________________________ 14 6.3 Eligibility to enter further chains of custody ________________________________________________ 16 6.4 Eligibility of Inseparable or Practicably Inseparable (IPI) stock(s) to enter further chains of custody ___ 16 7 Scoring ___________________________________________________________________________ 17 7.1 Summary of Performance Indicator level scores _____________________________________________ 17 7.2 Principle 1 ___________________________________________________________________________ 18 7.2.1 Principle 1 background _________________________________________________________________________ 18 7.2.1.1 Outline of the target species ________________________________________________________________ 18 7.2.1.1.1 Biology and distribution _________________________________________________________________ 18 7.2.1.1.2 Reproduction __________________________________________________________________________ 20 7.2.1.1.3 Age and growth ________________________________________________________________________ 22 7.2.1.1.4 Trophic Ecology ________________________________________________________________________ 24 7.2.1.1.5 Environment & climate change ___________________________________________________________ 25 7.2.1.2 Stock structure of Octopus vulgaris and metapopulation = sub-population rationale ___________________ 28 7.2.1.3 Overview of the Octopus vulgaris fisheries and stock assessments __________________________________ 30 7.2.1.3.2 Octopus vulgaris stock assessment ________________________________________________________ 32 7.2.1.3.3 Octopus trap fishery in Asturias ___________________________________________________________ 34 7.2.2 Catch profiles _________________________________________________________________________________ 37 7.2.3 Total Allowable Catch (TAC) and catch data _________________________________________________________ 41 7.2.4 Principle 1 Performance Indicator scores and rationales ______________________________________________ 42 PI 1.1.1 – Stock status ____________________________________________________________________________ 42 PI 1.1.2 – Stock rebuilding _________________________________________________________________________ 49 PI 1.2.1 – Harvest strategy _________________________________________________________________________ 50 PI 1.2.2 – Harvest control rules and tools _____________________________________________________________ 56 PI 1.2.3 – Information and monitoring _______________________________________________________________ 61 PI 1.2.4 – Assessment of stock status ________________________________________________________________ 65 7.3 Principle 2 ___________________________________________________________________________ 69 7.3.1 Principle 2 background _________________________________________________________________________ 69 Western Asturias Octopus Traps Fishery of Artisanal Cofradías –ACDR- page 2 7.3.1.1 Species assignment to MSC P2 categories ______________________________________________________ 69 7.3.1.1.1 UoA catch composition based on on-board observer program data ______________________________ 69 7.3.1.1.2 Bait species ___________________________________________________________________________ 76 7.3.1.1.3 P2 species scoring elements ______________________________________________________________ 79 7.3.1.2 Primary species ___________________________________________________________________________ 81 7.3.1.2.1 Primary species caught by the UoA ________________________________________________________ 81 7.3.1.2.2 Primary bait species ____________________________________________________________________ 81 7.3.1.3 Secondary species ________________________________________________________________________ 84 7.3.1.3.1 Secondary species caught by the UoA ______________________________________________________ 84 7.3.1.3.2 Secondary bait species __________________________________________________________________ 85 7.3.1.4 ETP species ______________________________________________________________________________ 85 7.3.1.5 Marine habitats and ecosystems _____________________________________________________________ 87 7.3.1.5.1 Habitats where the octopus trap fishery operates ____________________________________________ 87 7.3.1.5.2 Permanent and temporary area closures ___________________________________________________ 91 7.3.1.5.3 Trophic ecology of the common octopus ____________________________________________________ 92 7.3.1.5.4 Ghost fishing __________________________________________________________________________ 94 7.3.1.5.5 Bay of Biscay and the Iberian Coast Ecoregion _______________________________________________ 95 7.3.2 Principle 2 Performance Indicator scores and rationales _____________________________________________ 101 PI 2.1.1 – Primary species outcome ________________________________________________________________ 101 PI 2.1.2 – Primary species management strategy ______________________________________________________ 105 PI 2.1.3 – Primary species information ______________________________________________________________ 108 PI 2.2.1 – Secondary species outcome ______________________________________________________________ 111 PI 2.2.2 – Secondary species management strategy ___________________________________________________ 114 PI 2.2.3 – Secondary species information ____________________________________________________________ 118 PI 2.3.1 – ETP species outcome ____________________________________________________________________ 121 PI 2.3.2 – ETP species management strategy _________________________________________________________ 123 PI 2.4.1 – Habitats outcome ______________________________________________________________________ 128 PI 2.4.2 – Habitats management strategy ____________________________________________________________ 130 PI 2.4.3 – Habitats information ____________________________________________________________________ 133 PI 2.5.1 – Ecosystem outcome _____________________________________________________________________ 136 PI 2.5.2 – Ecosystem management strategy __________________________________________________________ 138 PI 2.5.3 – Ecosystem information __________________________________________________________________ 140 7.4 Principle 3 __________________________________________________________________________ 142 7.4.1 Principle 3 background ________________________________________________________________________ 142 7.4.1.1 Area of operation of the fishery_____________________________________________________________ 142 7.4.1.2 Jurisdiction of the fishery __________________________________________________________________ 143 7.4.1.3 Particulars of the recognised groups with interests in the UoA ____________________________________ 144 7.4.1.4 Consultations, decision-making process or processes and recognised participant _____________________ 146 7.4.1.5 Details of other non-MSC fishery users or activities, which