Several NGOs wrote to the European Commission on Thursday 21 February asking it to urgently impose a six-month moratorium on cod fishing in the Eastern Baltic.
The Coalition Clean Baltic, BalticSea2020, Oceana, Fisheries Secretariat, OurFish, Seas at Risk, The Swedish Anglers Association, Finnish Association for Nature Conservation and Swedish Society for Nature Conservation are sounding the alarm bell: the cod stock in the waters of the Eastern Baltic is on the brink of collapse, according to the latest scientific data.
NGOs call on Fisheries Commissioner Karmenu Vella to take urgent measures (Article 12 of the Basic Regulation on the Common Fisheries Policy) to save the stock: - Place cod fishing in the Eastern Baltic on moratorium for six months before the start of the fishing season; - revision of last October's decision on the level of the Total Allowable Catch (TAC); - rules to avoid sprat fishing in Baltic subdivisions 25 and 26 to maximise the number of prey available for cod.
Last October, the Council decided to increase the 2019 TAC for cod in the Eastern Baltic (see EUROPE 12118) by 15%. It had followed the Commission's initial proposal. (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)