Working Group (ICES)

An ICES working group is an expert group of the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea that carries out the stock assessments and analyses feeding ICES advice. Assessment working groups (such as the Working Group on the Assessment of Demersal Stocks in the North Sea and Skagerrak) compile catch, survey, and biological data, fit population models, and estimate stock status against reference points. Benchmark workshops periodically re-evaluate the assessment methods and reference points. The outputs are reviewed and consolidated by the Advisory Committee (ACOM) into formal catch advice.