On Thursday 26 November 2020, the European Court of Auditors (ECA) will publish a special report on EU action to safeguard marine ecosystems and biodiversity.
ABOUT THE AUDIT
Marine biodiversity and habitat loss is an ongoing challenge for Europe's seas. In their report, the auditors examine how this challenge is addressed by key EU policies and spending programmes in parts of the Atlantic and the Mediterranean.
The audit focuses on the Bay of Biscay and the Iberian Coast, Macaronesia and the Western Mediterranean Sea. Four Member States have coastlines on these sea areas: Spain, France, Italy and Portugal.
The report provides analysis of the results to date on the protection of marine biodiversity and makes a number of recommendations that will help inform future policy discussions.
ABOUT THE TOPIC
The EU has a policy of protecting the marine environment and using marine resources sustainably. The European Commission has a greater role in the conservation of marine biological resources than for environmental policies, where the responsibility is shared with Member States.
The EU common fisheries policy aims to ensure that fishing activities are environmentally sustainable. The most
relevant maritime environmental policies are set out in the Marine Strategy Framework Directive and the Birds and Habitats Directives. EU funding is spread over different funding instruments, such as the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund (EMFF), the LIFE and Interreg programmes.
FOR PRESS
The report and press release will be published on the ECA website
eca.europa.eu in 23 EU languages on Thursday 26 November at 11:30 CET.
For interviews or statements, interested journalists can contact ECA press office: press@eca.europa.eu
The ECA’s special reports set out the results of its audits of EU policies and programmes or management topics related to specific budgetary areas. The ECA selects and designs these audit tasks to be of maximum impact by considering the risks to performance or compliance, the level of income or spending involved, forthcoming developments and political and public interest.