Regional Government welcomes Council of Ministers' decision to authorise Environmental Fund to assume compensation payments for RAMPA - Communication

Secretaria Regional do Mar e das Pescas

The Regional Secretariat for the Sea and Fisheries welcomes the decision taken at the Council of Ministers meeting, held last Thursday, to approve a resolution authorising the Environmental Fund to incur expenditure and take on the respective multi-annual costs regarding the project "Azores Marine Park – compensation for the fishing sector" in the Autonomous Region of the Azores,  up to a maximum total amount of ten million Euros.

This was one of the decisions reached during the Council of Ministers' meeting held on Thursday, which was attended by the Presidents of the Regional Governments of the Azores, José Manuel Bolieiro, and Madeira, Miguel Albuquerque.

This measure aims to provide financial support to the fisheries sector, taking into account the eventual constraints that may arise from the implementation of the Azores Regional Network of Marine Protected Areas (RAMPA). The latter strengthens the protection of 287,000 km² of marine ecosystems, thus greatly contributing to the achievement of the national and European target of protecting 30% of marine areas by 2030.

In October 2024, the Regional Legislative Assembly of the Azores approved a proposal presented by the Regional Government of the Azores, based on joint work with the Oceano Azul Foundation and the Waitt Foundation, that would increase marine protected areas to 30%, with half of them under "full protection." The aim was to increase the preservation of marine resources, reduce extractive activities and make the use of maritime space in the islands more sustainable.

This approval was granted in the same week that the Council of Ministers Resolution approving the National Maritime Spatial Planning Situation Plan for the Azores subdivision was published. It also came a few days after the Minister of Environment and Energy announced that the National Government would compensate fishers 100% for any potential losses resulting from the implementation of RAMPA, through the Environmental Fund.

With this measure, already announced and now implemented, the intention is to offset immediate losses in the sector, while gradually adapting the regional fleet to the new sustainable fishing conditions, ensuring a balance between environmental conservation and the sector's stability. 

The Regional Secretariat for the Sea and Fisheries guarantees that the study on the compensation mechanism will be completed before the law comes into force on January 1, 2026, in accordance with the schedule set out in the Regional Legislative Decree.

The aim is to complete the final report of the study, the proposed compensation formulas with their impact percentages, and all necessary information for establishing the application rules by December 31 this year, so that the applications can be launched.