During the first BALTFISH Forum under its Finnish Presidency, a thoughtful discussion took place on key areas of the CFP reform. Regionalisation, the proposed discard ban, TFCs and the long-term management plan for salmon were the focus of the meeting. All of the director generals from the eight EU Baltic States participated, along with representatives from other regional actors such as the BS RAC, HELCOM and NGOs.
At the meeting, BALTFISH was praised by participants for providing a platform to understand better the management practices implemented by other Member States operating within the same sea basin. This is now more necessary than ever, as the Commission CFP reform proposals outline a structure for regionalised fisheries management that essentially will consist of national implementation of framework regulations agreed at the EU level. If the proposal is followed, different Member States may put in place different national policies to overarching targets, such as improvements in selectivity.
Amongst representatives of Member States, there was widespread support for the Commission proposals for a landing obligation. The discard ban in the Skagerrak between Norway, Sweden and Denmark, which will come into force in 2013, was identified as a helpful case study to see the practicalities of such a policy. However, calls were made for the ban to cover all species, rather than merely those commercial stocks covered by a quota. Moreover, it was suggested that the long-line salmon fishery in which ICES estimates that 10–20% of catches are discarded, should be included in the ban.
Calls were made by Latvia and Denmark to reduce or remove the minimum landing size for cod, which is currently 38 cm. Given the current unselective gears in use on some vessels, avoiding catches of juveniles will be problematic for certain trawlers However, with gear modification the discard could be met while maintaining the minimum landing size as it stands. Moreover, there was a broad consensus that fish should not be caught before they have had to opportunity to reproduce at least once during their lifetime.
There was little support for CCTV to be used as a one size fits all control measure, to help enforce controls of the proposed landing obligation. Several Member States thought it could be used on large trawlers but that it would be an expensive as well as invasive tool to monitor activities throughout the fleet. Moreover, the highgrading ban is currently not enforced through such means.
There was unanimity that the role of the RACs should remain advisory.
In the Baltic region, several Member States already have an ITQ system in place for at least certain fisheries. Yet the specifics of the Commission proposals for mandatory TFCs which cannot be recalled for at least 15 years proved unpopular. Most Member States would like to keep the system of quota distribution they currently use in place, and there was no support for TFCs to be compulsory throughout the EU. Key proponents such as Denmark and Estonia posited that an ITQ system helps to balance the fleet with fishing opportunities; however, they were reluctant to change their national systems.
German representatives at the meeting were uneasy about the way in which the proposed discard ban necessitated a TFC system. They argued that having selectivity targets would be a better first step so that fishermen may adapt their methods to meet the goal of having a discard free fishery. A discard ban could then follow.
There is clearly great potential for BALTFISH to be an important forum for regional fisheries management. As it now takes legislation at least 2 years to go through the co-decision procedure of both the Council and the European Parliament, both Member States and the Commission feel it is important for other governance structures to exist that will enable fisheries management to be more adaptable.
However, problems may arise in how BALTFISH implements its recommendations. As it is not a legislative body, decisions cannot be enforced through legal mechanisms. This leaves a risk for it to act as a private members club. At this meeting, the prospect of “gentlemen’s agreements” were voiced. However, it will weaken the legitimacy of the institution for deals to be brokered in private. Moreover, given that the second day of the meeting is a closed affair and has no publically available agenda or minutes, issues concerning transparency already exist..
BALTFISH is a regional platform for discussing fisheries in the Baltic. It was created as part of the EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea region, and initiated under the Swedish Presidency of the EU in 2009.