Acoura Marine Public Comment Draft Report Limfjord Blue Shell Mussel (Rope grown) MSC SUSTAINABLE FISHERIES CERTIFICATION Limfjord Blue Shell Mussel (Rope grown) Public Comment Draft Report November 2016 Prepared For: Vilsund Blue A/S Prepared By: Acoura Marine Ltd Page 1 of 134 Version 3 (24/03/15) Acoura Marine Public Comment Draft Report Limfjord Blue Shell Mussel (Rope grown) Public Comment Draft Report November 2016 Authors: Jim Andrews, Andrew Brand and Marie Maar Certification Body: Client: Acoura Marine Vilsund Blue A/S Address: Address: 6 Redheughs Rigg Vilsund Blue Edinburgh 7900 Nykobing Mors EH12 9DQ DK-7900 Scotland, UK Denmark Name: Fisheries Department Name: Søren Mattesen Tel: +44(0) 131 335 6601 Tel: +45 9772 3700 Email: [email protected] Email: [email protected] Web: www.Acoura.com Copyright © 2016 by Acoura Marine All rights reserved. No portion of this report may be reproduced in any manner for use by any other MSC Conformity Assessment Body without the express written permission of Acoura Marine, and subject to such conditions specified by Acoura Marine in any such permission. Page 2 of 134 Version 3 (24/03/15) Acoura Marine Public Comment Draft Report Limfjord Blue Shell Mussel (Rope grown) Contents 1 Glossary ......................................................................................................................................... 8 2 Executive Summary ...................................................................................................................... 9 3 Authorship and Peer Reviewers ................................................................................................ 11 3.1 Assessment Team ................................................................................................................ 11 3.1.1 Peer Reviewers ............................................................................................................. 11 3.1.2 RBF Training ................................................................................................................. 12 4 Description of the Fishery .......................................................................................................... 13 4.1 Unit(s) of Certification and scope of certification sought ....................................................... 13 4.1.1 Proposed Units of Certification ...................................................................................... 13 4.1.2 TAC and catch data ...................................................................................................... 14 4.1.3 Scope of Assessment in Relation to Enhanced Fisheries ............................................ 14 4.1.4 Scope of Assessment in Relation to Introduced Species Based Fisheries (ISBF) ....... 15 4.2 Overview of the fishery .......................................................................................................... 19 4.2.1 Background ................................................................................................................... 19 4.2.2 Description of the Units of Certification ......................................................................... 20 4.3 Principle One: Target Species Background .......................................................................... 25 4.3.1 Introduction .................................................................................................................... 25 4.3.2 Cultivated stock ............................................................................................................. 25 4.3.3 Wild stock status ........................................................................................................... 25 4.3.4 Relationship between wild and cultivated stocks .......................................................... 29 4.3.5 Research ....................................................................................................................... 30 4.3.6 Translocations ............................................................................................................... 31 4.4 Principle Two: Ecosystem Background ................................................................................. 32 4.4.1 Introduction .................................................................................................................... 32 4.4.2 Retained and discarded non-target species ................................................................. 32 4.4.3 Endangered, Threatened & Protected (ETP) species ................................................... 36 4.4.4 Habitats ......................................................................................................................... 37 4.4.5 Ecosystem ..................................................................................................................... 41 4.5 Principle Three: Management System Background.............................................................. 43 4.5.1 Overview ....................................................................................................................... 43 4.5.2 Fishing rights & licensing .............................................................................................. 43 4.5.3 Fishing locations............................................................................................................ 43 4.5.4 Legislation and Regulation ............................................................................................ 44 4.5.5 Administrative arrangements ........................................................................................ 44 4.5.6 Harvest controls ............................................................................................................ 45 4.5.7 Monitoring, Control and Surveillance ............................................................................ 45 4.5.8 Consultation and Dispute Resolution ............................................................................ 45 Page 3 of 134 Version 3 (24/03/15) Acoura Marine Public Comment Draft Report Limfjord Blue Shell Mussel (Rope grown) 5 Evaluation Procedure ................................................................................................................. 47 5.1 Harmonised Fishery Assessment ......................................................................................... 47 5.1.1 Harmonisation Details ................................................................................................... 47 5.2 Previous assessments .......................................................................................................... 48 5.3 Assessment Methodologies .................................................................................................. 48 5.4 Evaluation Processes and Techniques ................................................................................. 50 5.4.1 Site Visits ....................................................................................................................... 50 5.4.2 Consultations ................................................................................................................. 50 5.4.3 Evaluation Techniques .................................................................................................. 50 5.4.4 Risk Based Framework (RBF) Use ............................................................................... 51 6 Traceability .................................................................................................................................. 52 6.1 Target Eligibility Date ............................................................................................................ 52 6.2 Traceability within the Fishery ............................................................................................... 52 6.3 Eligibility to Enter Further Chains of Custody ....................................................................... 53 6.4 Eligibility of Inseparable or Practically Inseparable (IPI) stock(s) to Enter Further Chains of Custody ............................................................................................................................................. 53 7 Evaluation Results ...................................................................................................................... 55 7.1 Principle Level Scores ........................................................................................................... 55 7.2 Summary of Scores ............................................................................................................... 55 7.3 Summary of Conditions ......................................................................................................... 55 7.3.1 Recommendations ........................................................................................................ 55 7.4 Determination, Formal Conclusion and Agreement .............................................................. 55 8 References ................................................................................................................................... 57 8.1 Published material & reports ................................................................................................. 57 8.2 Legislation cited .................................................................................................................... 60 9 Appendix 1. Scoring & Rationale .............................................................................................