Concern about the impact of fishing on ecosystems and fisheries production is increasing (1, 2). Strategies to reduce these impacts while addressing the growing need for food security (3) include increasing selectivity (1, 2): capturing species, sexes, and sizes in proportions that differ from their occurrence in the ecosystem. Increasing evidence suggests that more selective fishing neither maximizes production nor minimizes impacts (4-7). Balanced harvesting would more effectively mitigate adverse ecological effects of fishing while supporting sustainable fisheries. This strategy, which challenges present management paradigms, distributes a moderate mortality from fishing across the widest possible range of species, stocks, and sizes in an ecosystem, in proportion to their natural productivity (8), so that the relative size and species composition is maintained.

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Ocean sustainability is a widespread public concern in Europe, and the issue of fisheries discards is one that is now widely known. With this increase in public awareness comes the need to adapt fisheries management policies to manage issues like fisheries discards that were not previously taken into account. In this context, this study analyses the evolution of the European Union's discard policy since its inception in 2006 until the present day and the events that shaped its current format. It analyses the policy's advantages and disadvantages, and its political, environmental and scientific consequences. It argues that an increase in public awareness, due to public campaigns against fisheries discards, has focused managers' attention onto a symptom of fisheries mismanagement, rather than on its underlying causes of over‐exploitation and lack of fisheries control. This has distorted the discussion of the reform of the Common Fisheries Policy and potentially undermined its provisions relating to discards.

A comparison was made between catches from deepwater trawl and longline surveys (1993)(1994)(1995)(1996)(1997)(1998)(1999)(2000) in the Northeast Atlantic. Longline catches were dominated by elasmobranchs, particularly squalid sharks and species numbers were low. Trawl catches had higher species numbers, with more teleosts, though elasmobranchs were still an important component. Species composition of the catch was depth dependent. Comparative trawl and longline surveys of the eastern and southern slopes of the Rockall Trough (west and north of Ireland) were used to examine size-selectivity. Trawls and longlines selected for significantly different size frequency distributions of Centroscymnus coelolepis and Deania calceus, though not for Centrophorus squamosus. These data highlight some important aspects of behavior of the species studying relation to fishing gears. Smaller C. coelolepis were selected by longlines than trawls, suggesting that smaller sharks were present at a considerable height above the seabed, out of reach of trawls, but attracted to baited hooks. In the case of D. calceus, larger females were selected by hooks, but were not present in trawl catches, possibly indicating their ability to escape towed gears. Trawl selectivity ogives were constructed for D. calceus and ogives for C. coelolepis and C. squamosus were simulated, using available data. Results suggest that longlines are not as selective for C. coelolepis as trawls. Selectivity ogives for D. calceus were similar in form, but longlines selected bigger individuals. Life history studies suggest that these species cannot sustain high fishing pressures. The implications of these results for the management of fisheries taking elasmobranchs are discussed.