Guidelines for advice on fisheries that concurrently catch a mix of stocks of the same species

Various issues arise in connection with providing advice for fisheries that concurrently catch multiple stocks of the same species. This document provides guidance on how such advice should be formulated under circumstances wherein different levels of information about stock mixing in these concurrent fisheries are present. The information in this document is relevant to ICES expert groups that deliver evidence for advice on fishing opportunities, for advice drafting groups, and for interested policymakers, stakeholders, and the wider scientific community.

The amount of information available will determine the type of advice that can be given. However, advice should be consistent with the ICES advisory framework. Specifically:

• Advice should be precautionary for all stocks in a fishery that concurrently catch a mix of stocks of the same species.
• The advice for individual stocks should be set according to ICES advice rules. This includes the rule that there should be zero catch if the stock is below B_lim and if there is no fishing mortality that will, with > 50% probability, recover the stock to above B_lim in the year following the year in which the advice applies.
• When one of the stocks in the mixed-stock fishery is below its biomass trigger and/or has zero catch advice, the mixing should be addressed in the headline advice, with mitigation measures given if possible.