Legal aspects of the conservation of endemic freshwater fish in the northern Mediterranean region Original Research Article

Several — anthropogenic — influences are identified which cause the decline of freshwater fish, such as overfishing, introduction of alien taxa, habitat degradation and habitat loss. Whilst the problem of overfishing and introduction of alien taxa from the point of view of legislation (not implementation!) is relatively easy to handle, the conservation and protection of aquatic habitats proves to be a complex and difficult task. Aquatic habitats — being in a way the ‘vitals’ of their respective ecosystems — are extremely sensitive to harmful influences. They are affected directly or indirectly by a vast number of human activities. Therefore quite a number of different legal issues and also several administrative bodies are involved in the problem. Besides those concerning the use of aquatic resources in general, international instruments exist which aim at preserving habitats and/or their flora and fauna — including aquatic habitats. Among these, the EC Flora, Fauna and Habitat Directive and the Berne Convention explicitly include freshwater fish endemic to the northern Mediterranean region in their appendices. These instruments oblige member states — among others — to conserve these species and their habitats and/or certain sensitive aquatic habitats. They do, however, only establish general obligations which need to be implemented by more detailed provisions in national legislation. The establishment of specially protected areas for protected species (e.g. in France) or the development of recovery plans for endangered species (e.g. in Spain) are two examples. However, research on the subject of national legislation for the protection of endemic freshwater fish should be developed with the aid of local experts. To this end general information on legal and administrative means and methods at a national level is also given.