Fisheries in the context of marine spatial planning: Defining principal areas for fisheries in the German EEZ

A method is presented to define principal areas for fisheries at high spatial resolution applicable to be implemented into marine spatial planning procedures. Vessel monitoring system (VMS) data from 2005 to 2006 are acquired to determine vessel-based fishing effort. Principal areas for the German exclusive economic zone (EEZ) are defined as areas in which 75% of the effort of either year is carried out. Examples are given for the 5 most abundant fisheries in the German EEZ in terms of vessel-based effort, i.e. gill netting, pelagic trawling, demersal otter board trawling and beam trawling >300 and <300 HP. A historical comparison for demersal otter board trawling shows relative stability of spatial utilization patterns in the North Sea section of the EEZ.