The Commission for the environment, with the approval of the report presented by Laura Gonzàlez Alvarez, gave a favourable reception to the communication of the Commission “Towards a strategy for the protection and conservation of the marine environment”, but also affirmed that some objectives contained in the document are not ambitious enough. The MEPs therefore ask the European Commission to present as soon as possible a European marine strategy based on the principle of precaution and the concept of sustainability. Since fishing is the human activity that exerts most influence on marine ecosystems, the MEPs underline the urgent need to tackle the problem of over-fishing with a view to replenishing fish reserves. They also ask that the programme aimed at extending the protection of species and habitats of European waters be not deferred to 2005; that immediate measures be adopted to reduce the accidental killing of protected species; to include oil spilt in the marine environment in Objective 7 (chronic pollution from hydrocarbons); to apply more strictly the directive on the treatment of urban waste water and, lastly, to solve the problem of flags of convenience.
