Conservation NGOs have expressed their anger with the EU, as Baltic Sea fishing quotas were set late on Oct. 14 at levels above the EU’s own legal requirements for sustainable fishing levels in 2020.
In a press release, the Danish government declared the quotas had “struck a good balance” between the development of fish stocks, and the preservation of the fishing industry.
Negotiations took place between EU member states and the European Commission (EC) at the Luxembourg Council of Ministers. The EC had proposed to reduce cod quotas in the western Baltic by 68% and herring quotas by 71%. Following yesterday’s meeting, Denmark said its quotas would fall by 60% and 65% respectively.
Western Baltic quotas were set as follows: cod, 3,806 metric tons (down 60% year-on-year, rather than the 68% cut proposed); herring, 3,150t (down 65% rather than 71%); plaice, 6,894t (down 32%, as proposed); and sprat, 210,147t (down 22%, rather than 25%).
NGO Our Fish said in its own press release that these levels were “far above the EU fisheries legal requirements for sustainable fishing levels in 2020”. Conservation NGOs have expressed their outrage, accusing EU governments of acting with no regard to the law, and ignoring the ongoing overfishing and devastation of the Baltic Sea’s ecosystem, it said.
2019 Undercurrent News