The 2020 deadline for achieving sustainable fisheries under the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) came and went, yet the legal requirement was not met. The EU Agriculture and Fisheries Council (AGRIFISH) negotiations in October were the first chance for EU Member States to meet their obligations to end overfishing and set an example in the first year of the new decade.
Environmental NGOs welcomed the decision by EU Fisheries Ministers to set Baltic fishing limits for 2021 in accordance with scientific advice for eight of ten fish stocks in the Baltic, thanks in large part to the strong position of the European Commission. However, the result is still far from sufficient to bring the herring and the cod back to healthy levels for the wellbeing of the Baltic Sea ecosystem and the communities that depend on them.
"To be effective, fisheries management must prioritize incorporating ecosystem and climate impact assessments."
Ministers made significant cuts in the total allowable catches (TACs) for the herring of the Western and Central Baltic Sea, in line with the latest scientific advice. They also agreed to a moderate increase of the TACs for herring in the Gulf of Riga, and for Western Baltic cod, plaice, sprat and salmon in the main basin area of the Baltic Sea, while the TACs for salmon in the Gulf of Finland will be moderately decreased. The TACs for the Bothnian herring remain the same as 2020.
Even with zero fishing on Eastern Baltic cod, the stock will not recover for years. More efforts must be made to secure the cod’s habitats, feeding and breeding grounds. Fishing quotas play just a small (although crucial) part. To be effective, fisheries management must prioritize incorporating ecosystem and climate impact assessments. Monitoring and control must also be drastically improved to ensure that the rules are being followed.
The decisions taken in Luxembourg in October demonstrate that the EU still has far to go to match its fisheries management decisions with the commitments and ambitions to ecosystem-based management and biodiversity restoration as expressed in the EU Green Deal and its Biodiversity Strategy.
This article is part of the WWF Baltic Newsletter – December 2020
