ABOUT MeCCAM

MeCCAM aims to develop and implement effective climate mitigation and adaptation solutions that strengthen the resilience and sustainability of the European fisheries sector. By using a collaborative, multi-actor approach, MeCCAM works closely with fishers, industry partners, and policymakers to co-create practical tools and strategies. 

Our Vision

The MeCCAM project envisions a resilient and sustainable future for European fisheries, strengthened through effective climate mitigation and adaptation. It focuses on developing, testing, and scaling innovative, practical, and replicable solutions that address the complex challenges posed by climate change. Using a collaborative, multi-actor approach, MeCCAM will work closely with fishers, industry partners, and policymakers to co-create practical tools and strategies to reach its goal. Through six regional case studies, MeCCAM ensures that these solutions are grounded in the daily realities of the sector and responsive to regional needs. The project seeks to empower the fisheries sector with actionable knowledge, scalable technologies, and policy-ready recommendations that reduce environmental impact whilst strengthening adaptability to a changing climate, and socio-economic sustainability across Europe.

The Challenge

Seafood is widely seen as one of the healthiest and most climate-friendly food sources, but climate change is creating serious challenges for the future of fishing. Warming oceans and changing marine ecosystems are affecting fish populations, with several countries expected to lose more than 30% of their fish biomass by the end of the century under high-emissions scenarios. If strong climate action is taken, those losses could be reduced to around 10%. While the fishing sector has started to cut emissions, there is still a lot more potential to contribute to the EU’s climate target, specifically reducing emissions by 55% by 2030 and reaching climate neutrality by 2050. At the same time, many fish stocks are under pressure, and better, faster fisheries management is needed to rebuild and protect them. One of the biggest barriers to progress is the gap between scientific research and what industry puts into practice. There is also a lack of flexible, adaptive management systems that can respond to the changing conditions caused by climate change. Without urgent and coordinated efforts to both reduce emissions and adapt to these changes, the long-term sustainability and resilience of the fisheries sector will be at serious risk. MeCCAM directly addresses these gaps by developing practical, science-based tools and strategies to help the fisheries sector adapt to climate change, reduce emissions, and meet sustainability goals.

MeCCAM Solutions

MeCCAM aims to show how the fisheries sector can take action to reduce its impact on climate change and adapt to its effects. The project will work closely with a wide range of people and organisations, from local communities to international groups, to make sure the tools and solutions it develops are used by the industry after the project ends. 

What we want to achieve 

  • Understand how climate change affects fish stocks and distribution.
  • Support sustainable fisheries through improved practices and innovative gear.
  • Strengthen adaptive management with climate-informed advice.
  • Improve data collection and digital tools.
  • Help seafood value chains adapt to emerging species and new market opportunities.


Project results & solutions

  • Climate-informed advice prototypes.
  • Good practice guidance for mitigation and adaptation.
  • Innovative fishing gears that reduce climate impact.
  • Plans to use and add value to emerging species.
  • Fishing strategy decision-support tool.
  • Mobile app for catch registration and real-time adaptation.
  • Environmental impact management software for seafood value chains.

MeCCAM Work Packages

MeCCAM is organised into eight Work Packages (WPs). MeCCAM’s case studies are concentrated in WPs 2 and 3, with WP 2 concentrating on climate change adaptation solutions and WP 3 on mitigation solutions. These then feed into WP 4, which will assess each solution and WP 5, which will develop policy recommendations based on the outcomes. WPs 6 and 7 are key to the project as they facilitate stakeholder engagement and communication, dissemination and exploitation activities in the MeCCAM project.

Learn more about them:

Work package 1: Identify impacts of climate change

WP lead: Heriot-Watt University

WP1 will investigate the impact of climate change on some of the major commercial fish stocks in Europe. It will identify the key climate-related needs and risks of each case study, building, when possible, on end-user-approved ecosystem overviews and modelled species distributions.

The WP objectives include:

  • Identify available information on case studies, data, needs and gaps related to climate change mitigation and adaptation.
  • Modelling of historic data and uptake of previously modelled species distributions to understand the influence of temperature on fish populations.
  • Forecast how distribution, growth and productivity may change under a range of future climate scenarios.


Contact person: 
Paul Fernandes

WP lead: Spanish National Research Council (CSIC) 

WP2 will develop adaptation solutions, help demonstrate sustainable opportunities for new fish stocks, reduce the environmental impact of fisheries, and improve their management through better data sharing. 

The WP objectives include: 

  • Develop, test, and implement adaptation solutions within case studies.
  • Collaborate with WP3 to coordinate testing and implementation of mitigation and adaptation solutions within case studies.
  • Provide input into integrated mitigation and adaptation plans and good practice recommendations to be developed in WP5.

Contact person: 
Luis Taboada Antelo

WP lead: Nofima  

WP3 is responsible for implementing the mitigation solutions across the case studies.  

The WP objectives include: 

  • Develop, test, and implement adaptation solutions within case studies. 
  • Collaborate with WP2 to coordinate testing and implementation of mitigation and adaptation solutions within case studies 
  • Provide input into integrated mitigation and adaptation plans and good practice recommendations to be developed in WP5. 

Contact person: 
Petter Olsen

WP lead: Matís Iceland 

WP4 will use a multi-faceted approach to evaluate and provide feedback on the efficacy of mitigation and adaptation solutions developed, tested, and implemented in Work Packages 2, 3, and 5.   

The WP objectives include:  

  • Compile baseline scenarios for evaluating MeCCAM solutions. 
  • Assess the political, economic, social, technological, environmental and legal feasibility of MeCCAM solutions. 
  • Assess the socio-economic and environmental impact by using life cycle assessments of selected mitigation and adaptation solutions, and by providing feedback to Work Packages 2, 3, and 5. 
  • Examine the opportunities and barriers for utilising selected MeCCAM solutions and their potential for transferability. 


Contact person: 
Jónas Viðarsson

WP lead: UiT

WP5 is responsible for developing policy recommendations and solutions on mitigation and adaptation in European fisheries.

The WP objectives include:

  • Identify barriers and opportunities for improving climate change mitigation and adaptation in the seafood industry and recommend actions.
  • Develop climate change mitigation and adaptation plans for incorporation into national plans.
  • Support climate change mitigation and adaptation in the fishing industry by contributing to the alignment with the EU Taxonomy for fisheries, and implementing the European Sustainability Reporting Standards and the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive. 
  • Improve the adaptive capacity of fisheries by developing prototypes for climate-informed fisheries advice.


Contact person: 
Michaela Aschan

WP lead: The International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES)

WP6 ensures the multi-actor approach and that the project’s outputs are demand-driven, enabling uptake by end-users. WP6 will also develop training materials to support management in the fisheries sector to mitigate and adapt to climate change.

The WP objectives are to:

  • To identify needs and insights of key relevant fisheries stakeholders and end-users with respect to climate change impact, mitigation and adaptation.
  • To continuously interact with and gather feedback on MeCCAM´s prototypes from stakeholders at the case study, regional and international levels.
  • To identify key training needs and design training material that will facilitate the transfer of MeCCAM´s results.

Contact person: 
Henn Ojaveer

WP lead: SUBMARINER  

WP7 will strategically disseminate, exploit and communicate project activities and results. 

The WP objectives include: 

  • Disseminate information on project aims, activities, solutions and results to a range of audiences. 
  • Support the exploitation of MeCCAM results, including the design of final versions of MeCCAM solutions, and planning exploitation activities for the project solutions to enhance user uptake. 
  • Collaborate with WP6 to secure the multi-actor approach in all communication, dissemination and stakeholder engagement activities, ensuring that the project outputs align with stakeholder needs and to increase the impact and uptake of solutions. 


Contact person: 
Annika Steele

WP lead: Sjókovin

WP8 will facilitate the overall coordination and management of MeCCAM.  

The objectives of WP8 are to: 

  • Oversee the project, paying attention to financial, organisational, contractual, logistical, informational, quality assurance, and conformity to European Commission rules and regulations. 
  • Ensure the participation of all partners and that all MeCCAM’s specific objectives will be achieved. 
  • Prepare, carry out and post-process major project meetings. 
  • Complete and ensure liaison, accurate and timely periodic (financial and technical) reporting for the European Commission. 
  • Monitor expenses and allocate project budget. 
  • Develop and maintain communication and knowledge management, and fulfil responsibilities towards the European Commission and consortium commitments, including gender equality issues and ethics requirements.

     

Contact person: 
Unn Laksá