Joint NGO recommendations on Baltic Sea fishing opportunities for 2023 1.
INTRODUCTION
In October 2022, EU fisheries ministers will agree on fishing opportunities in the Baltic Sea for 2023. As the deadline to end overfishing by 2020 at the latest as legally prescribed by Article 2(2) of the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP)1 has passed, all fishing limits must be in line with sustainable exploitation rates. Last year, the EU AGRIFISH Council set four out of ten2 Total Allowable Catches (TACs) in the Baltic Sea exceeding the best available scientific advice for 2022, thereby contravening the CFP deadline. The European Commission proposals exceeded scientific advice for the four TACs - eastern Baltic cod, western Baltic herring, salmon in the main Baltic basin and the Gulf of Finland salmon. Fisheries ministers further increased some catch limits above what was proposed by the European Commission3 However, behind all of the numbers, the real problem is that scientific advice and the models underpinning it are not delivering ecosystem-based management options. Setting TAC based on single species advice omits the need to consider sub-populations at risk and misses consideration of size and age distribution. ICES can produce more comprehensive advice but the decision-makers must request this and until they do, they must set TACs with much greater caution.
1 REGULATION (EU) No 1380/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 December 2013 on the Common Fisheries Policy 2 Eastern Baltic cod, western Baltic herring, salmon in the main basin and salmon in the Gulf of Finland. 3 Central Baltic herring, western Baltic cod, Baltic sprat, Baltic plaice and salmon in the Gulf of Finland. Although fisheries ministers agreed on higher TACs for sprat and central Baltic herring and plaice, compared to the European Commission’s proposal, those TACs have been set below the maximum threshold advised by ICES.