Dolphin Protection: Commission Proposes Extending Bay of Biscay Winter Fishing Ban to 2027

The European Commission has formally proposed extending the annual winter fishing closure in the Bay of Biscay through winter 2027. Under the proposal, vessels over eight metres in length will remain barred from fishing in the targeted ocean area during the sensitive winter months, an effort designed to prevent the incidental capture of common dolphins and other small cetaceans. The proposed extension marks the fourth consecutive year that the seasonal restriction has been put forward. It follows a joint request from five member states with fleets operating in these Atlantic waters: France, Spain, Portugal, Belgium, and the Netherlands. The marine mammals are strictly protected under the EU Habitats Directive, a foundational piece of environmental legislation that legally obliges EU governments to prevent the harm or disturbance of vulnerable marine species.

For fishing crews in Atlantic ports across France and northern Spain, winter closures mean nets out of the water and vessels tied up at the quay during weeks that would otherwise yield commercial catches. While national governments frequently offer financial compensation to offset the operational downtime, the friction between conservation mandates and coastal livelihoods remains sharp. For ocean conservationists, however, the temporary hiatus in industrial net fishing is seen as indispensable. Common dolphins in the Bay of Biscay are particularly vulnerable to entanglement in mid-water trawls and gillnets during their winter migrations. The measure highlights how strict EU environmental commitments directly reshape economic activity on the water, requiring commercial fleets to trade fishing days for cetacean protection.

Behind the seasonal ban lies a mechanism known as regionalisation. Under the EU's Common Fisheries Policy, member states sharing a marine basin can join forces to draft a 'joint recommendation' tailored to local waters, rather than waiting for top-down rules designed entirely inside the Berlaymont. When France, Spain, Portugal, Belgium, and the Netherlands reached agreement on how to manage their shared Atlantic fishery, they submitted their draft to the Commission. The Commission is now turning that consensus into a delegated act—an administrative instrument that updates technical rules without triggering a full legislative negotiation from scratch. It represents a rare moment in EU governance where member capitals explicitly ask Brussels to restrict their own fleets, knowing that arguing over regional fishing rights usually leads to depleted stocks and an infringement letter from the Commission.

Now that the Commission has published the proposed draft, the measure enters a standard scrutiny period. Both the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union—representing national governments—have the right to examine the text. Unless a qualified majority of member states in the Council or a majority of MEPs in the Parliament objects within two months, the delegated act will automatically enter into force. Once finalized, authorities in the five participating member states will enforce the winter prohibition across their registered fleets through 2027, relying on satellite vessel-monitoring systems to ensure compliance at sea.