This European Standard provides sampling procedures with electricity procedures to be used by trained persons in evaluating fish communities in streams, rivers and littoral areas for the purpose of classification of ecological status. These procedures allow standardisation of sampling methods for descriptions of fish communities. The use of standardised methods is a critical requirement for the comparability of results.

This European Standard describes an electric fishing method to be used when catching fish for the purpose of characterising composition, abundance and age structure of a given fish community. Sampling-related issues include obtaining permissions, concerns about endangered species, protective measures of importance for the user of the sampling apparatus and co-ordination of activities with other sampling programmes.

The processing of samples covers taxonomic identification, counting, measurement of biologic parameters (length, weight etc.), and examination of fish for external anomalies.