As we had anticipated (see EUROPE 12300/6), on Tuesday 23 July the European Commission announced a ban, with immediate effect, of commercial fishing for cod in most of the Baltic Sea until 31 December 2019.
These emergency measures were published in the Official Journal of the EU. They aim to “prevent the imminent collapse of the cod stock in the Eastern Baltic”. According to Karmenu Vella, Fisheries Commissioner, “the impact of this cod stock collapsing would be catastrophic for the livelihoods of many fishermen and coastal communities all around the Baltic Sea”. It will also be necessary to manage the stock adequately in the long term, the Commissioner said.
The ban will cover all fishing vessels in all those areas of the Baltic Sea where the stock is present (subdivisions 24 to 26).
However, targeted derogations are provided to allow certain fishing vessels (pelagic fishing and small-scale coastal fishing using 'passive' gear) to have 'by-catches' of cod.
The need for longer-term action for this stock will be raised when the Fisheries Council sets 2020 fishing quotas in Baltic waters in October.
Other factors other than fishing threaten the stock: lack of salinity, too high water temperatures and too little oxygen, as well as parasite infestation.
Link to the measures: https://bit.ly/2JNlRc9 (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)