AZTI reinforces its presence as a scientific advisor to the European Union on fisheries issues

• Researcher Dorleta García has been appointed vice-chair of the Advisory Committee of the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES).
• In addition, the researcher Haritz Arrizabalaga has been appointed vice-president of the Standing Committee on Research and Statistics of the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT).
• These appointments represent further recognition of the scientific quality of the Basque centre and are in addition to the outstanding presence of AZTI research staff in other international bodies such as the EU Scientific, Technical and Economic Committee for Fisheries.

Sukarrieta, 19 October 2021 – The scientific quality of the research staff at the Basque technology centre AZTI, a member of BRTA, and the excellence of its results has once again been recognised internationally with two new appointments in world-leading scientific bodies.

Researcher Dorleta Garcia has recently been appointed vice-chair of the Advisory Committee (ACOM) of the International Council for the Exploration of the Seas (ICES), an intergovernmental organisation responsible for providing impartial data on the state and sustainable use of the oceans and seas. With a scope of action that extends across the North Atlantic, ICES is made up of around 6000 scientists from 20 member countries in Europe and North America, as well as other observer countries such as South Africa, Australia and New Zealand.

The Advisory Committee of this organisation is responsible for advising the member countries of the body on the basis of the scientific knowledge generated by ICES, in order to achieve the objectives of conservation, management and sustainability of the seas.

Researcher Haritz Arrizabalaga has also been appointed vice-chairman of the Standing Committee on Research and Statistics of the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT), an intergovernmental fisheries organisation responsible for the conservation of tuna and tuna-like species in the Atlantic Ocean and adjacent seas.

The ICCAT Standing Committee (SCRS) is the body responsible for, among other duties, advising the Commission on the need to implement specific conservation and fisheries management measures for tuna and tuna-like species.

“These two appointments of AZTI researchers represent a new recognition of the high scientific quality of the centre, which, combined with the application of research results, is the basis that has allowed our team to become an international benchmark”, says the scientific director of the technology centre, Xabier Irigoien.

A track record of international recognition

The appointment of García and Arrizabalaga adds to the work of the entity in representing the EU in all Regional Distant Water Fisheries Organisations and to the prominent presence of AZTI research staff in several international bodies.

Thus, 10% of the Scientific, Technical and Economic Committee for Fisheries of the European Union (STECF), the body responsible for advising the EU on fisheries matters, is made up of experts from AZTI, a milestone that has made AZTI the research centre with the largest representation in this institution.

In addition, AZTI’s scientific staff leads different international committees, including the Scientific Presidency of the Indian Ocean Tuna Commission (IOTC). The centre also participates in the Scientific Committee of the European Environment Agency and on the board of the Spanish-Portuguese Association of Natural Resources and Environmental Economics (AERNA).

AZTI researchers also act as scientific coordinators representing the EU on various international bodies such as the aforementioned ICCAT and IOTC. AZTI staff also work in the coordination of European assessments of species of commercial interest for the Basque Country within the framework of ICES.