Greenpeace’s inflatable fishing boat takes over the city Centre in Gdansk, Poland, in a call for Poland and the EU to take action and support a sustainable CFP reform.
On Wednesday, 11th July, the Greenpeace inflatable fishing trawler, on tour through Europe, sailed from Germany to Gdansk city center. The vessel features an exhibition and information sessions, which draw attention to overfishing and the EU´s Common Fisheries Policy (CFP). Residents of Gdansk and the tri-city area were invited to learn more about the threats to our shared fish resources. The CFP reform is, according to Greenpeace, “the last chance to halt the demise of the European fish populations and the EU fishing sector”.
In their Call for Action Greenpeace highlight five steps which they see needs to be included in the reform: i) recovering fish stocks and reducing the risk of depletion, ii) transitioning toward sustainable fishing practices, iii) reducing fishing power to sustainable levels, iv) protecting the marine environment by limiting impact and v) making the allocation of quotas and subsidies conditional on conscientious environmental practices.
The need for the Polish government to focus on responsible fisheries management is especially pertinent at the moment. Ahead of the July Council, they signed a declaration along with France, Spain and other Member States associated with unsustainable practices, calling for further subsidies for fleet modernisation and decommissioning. Both of these practices had been excluded from the Commission CFP reform proposals, as they seek to reduce overcapacities and balance the European fleet with the availability of fishing opportunities.
The tour fills an important role, as we move toward the conclusion of the CFP reform. The inflatable fishing trawler continues its tour and is now sailing towards Central and Eastern Europe.