Despite a request to this effect made by Sweden and supported by several EU countries, the European Commission indicated, on Monday 21 October, that it was refusing, at this stage, to relax legislation to allow the hunting of cormorants, which cause damage to certain fish stocks.
Finland supported Swedish’s request and has asked that seal hunting also be allowed to continue (see EUROPE 13507/10).
Denmark has asked to be able to regulate the cormorant and seal population and supports the Swedish idea of including cormorants in Annex IIb of the Birds Directive as a species that can be hunted “in order to contribute to the recovery of vulnerable fish stocks”. The Czech Republic, Romania, Lithuania, Estonia and Poland supported Sweden’s request as well.
The European Commission has pointed out that Member States can use the derogations provided for in the Directive to combat the damage caused by cormorants to fish stocks. “Given the margin of flexibility available to EU countries, the Commission does not intend to change the legal protection regime for the cormorant”, said Commissioner Janusz Wojciechowski. In spring 2025, the Commission plans to present guidelines on the application of derogations for the proper management of cormorants.
The Commission hopes to present an assessment of the rules on trade in seal products in January 2025, and has not ruled out authorising limited seal hunting in the Baltic. (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)