News
December 15, 2021
Overfishing continues in EU waters
Yesterday, the Fisheries Council came to an agreement on fishing opportunities in 2022 for the North Sea, Atlantic, Mediterranean and Black seas. More than a third of stock will continue to be overfished in 2022. No agreement has been reached with the UK, so provisional quotas have been put in place for the first quarter of 2022. The European Commission still hopes that an agreement can be reach by 20 December at the latest.
December 14, 2021
Not a great deal for eel in 2022
After stark and clear scientific advice calling for zero catches of the critically endangered European eel in all habitats, the Fisheries Council agreed on a roll-over of the – so far poorly implemented – three-month eel fishing closures.
December 8, 2021
Proposal on eel not aligned with scientific advice
Instead of following the scientific advice, the Commission wants to strengthen the implementation of the three-month eel fishing closures and conduct a wide-ranging stakeholder consultation. Even this is likely to meet with resistance from Member States.
November 29, 2021
Herring fisheries drove economic development in the Baltic Sea
Stockholm university together with the Swedish Institute for the Marine Environment hosted a full day symposium with a focus on fisheries in the Baltic Sea from a historical perspective. The newly released report “Fisket i Stockholms skärgård under historisk tid”, Fisheries in the Stockholm archipelago in historic times, was the underlying reason for the event. … Continued
November 10, 2021
Second consultation on EU Action plan to conserve fisheries resources and protect marine ecosystems
On 25 October, the European Commission launched a targeted stakeholder consultation on the planned Action plan to conserve fisheries resources and protect marine ecosystems. The action plan is part of the EUs efforts to restore and protect marine ecosystems and apply an ecosystem-based management approach.
November 4, 2021
Scientific advice: no catches of European eel can be considered sustainable
Today, the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea, ICES, published its scientific advice on fishing opportunities for European eel for 2022. It is now aligned with advice for other species in dire straits: zero catch for 2022. The advice also includes a clear call for catches for restocking to stop, as it increases eel mortality without any proven net benefit to eel reproduction.
October 29, 2021
Mixed feelings in Baltic Sea States after October Council
After October Agrifish Council, which focused in particular on the proposal for a Council regulation fixing the fishing opportunities in the Baltic Sea for 2022 Member States’ governments published press releases. Most of the countries emphasized the terrible state of the Baltic Sea and the lengthy and difficult negotiations in the Council. The reactions to … Continued
October 25, 2021
Fishing ban on all Baltic Sea cod reality after decades of mismanagement
Negotiations of the 2022 fishing quotas for the Baltic Sea on 11-12 October 2021 resulted in a prohibition of all targeted fishing for cod in the Baltic Sea – both the eastern and the western cod populations are now in such bad shape that only a small bycatch quota is allowed. This clearly illustrates the deterioration of both the environment and many fish stocks in all of the Baltic Sea.
October 22, 2021
Plight of European eel explained on Swedish television
This week, the recurring Swedish television programme Uppdrag Granskning – Mission: Investigate in English – highlighted the plight of the European eel and the ineffectiveness of many of the current management measures. It focused particularly on the devastating effects of hydropower installations and the costly, artificial support provided by restocking and trap-and-transport.
October 13, 2021
AGRIFISH: Some Baltic Fish Still in Crisis as the EU Starts to Consider Ecosystem Impacts
Press release from Coalition Clean Baltic, FishSec, Our Fish, Oceana, Seas at Risk and WWF Luxembourg, 12 October 2021: Following the EU AGRIFISH Council press conference today, NGOs expressed disappointment that Member State fisheries ministers again haggled all night to raise Baltic fishing limits for 2022 above the European Commission’s proposal and against the clear … Continued