Joint NGO recommendations on Baltic Sea fishing opportunities for 2024 1. INTRODUCTION The Baltic Sea ecosystem is in severe distress and the major commercial fish stocks have never been in worse condition. Both cod stocks are on the verge of collapse, all herring stocks are facing severe difficulties except the well managed Gulf of Riga herring, salmon is in decline and sprat has had low recruitment for two years in a row. Only the plaice spawning stock biomass is high, however alarming signals show a high number of small and skinny fish. In ICES’ own press release, the situation was summarised accordingly: “For a number of large commercial stocks, the advice does not make for positive reading.” and “The Baltic Sea faces many challenges, and conditions here have been deteriorating over the past decade. Overfishing and habitat destruction have impacted the biodiversity and ecological balance of the sea.1” It is clear the current management system is not working. We must have a management system in the Baltic Sea accounting not only for fisheries, but acknowledging and protecting ecosystem functions. As of today, the Baltic Sea does not even have mixed fishery advice. Considering the dire state of the Baltic and its fish, all sectors with an impact on the ecosystem must contribute to bringing the Baltic back to a healthy and productive state. In the case
1 https://www.ices.dk/news-and-events/news-archive/news/Pages/baltic_advice.aspx