The fish population in the Baltic Sea has been declining for many years. The EU wants to put a stop to the problem with new fishing quotas. There is criticism from various camps.
Hamburg/Rostock – Overfishing in the Baltic Sea is a problem that scientists have been warning about for a long time. In October of this year, the agriculture ministers of the European Union (EU) sets fishing quotas. Researchers criticized that these were far too high and the species were not sufficiently protected. The fish are already struggling with the consequences of climate change. German Baltic Sea fishermen also complain about the catch quotas, but believe they are set too low – and speak of a “situation that threatens their existence”.
Expert on EU fishing quotas for the Baltic Sea that are too high: “Most species are doing badly”
There are fewer and fewer fish in the Baltic Sea. The trend has been downwards for decades. The reason: overfishing. Now the EU has set the fishing quotas for plaice and sprat ten percent lower, and the fishing of herring and Cod is completely forbidden. However, fishermen are still allowed to pull these species out of the water as bycatch. Criticism comes from science. “It doesn’t matter to the fish whether they are caught as a targeted catch or as bycatch. “They won’t survive either,” said marine biologist Rainer Froese in clear words in an interview with ZDF. Experts and environmentalists believe the EU’s catch quotas are far too high.
That’s what warned Environmental organization WWF recently explicitly warned against eating herring because of the low fish stocks, which is caught in the southern and western Baltic Sea. This is of fundamental importance for the food structure in the oceans, but “the biomass of the spawning stock” shows “a declining trend” in the long term, it was said. From an expert’s point of view, the calculation is quite simple. The crucial question is: Will more be removed than grows back or not? “If you take out more, the population will shrink,” continues marine biologist Froese. “Most species are doing poorly,” says Froese. For years, scientists have therefore recommended not to fish for herring in the western Baltic Sea and only a very small amount of cod.
Climate change is a challenge for fish and is further decimating stocks
But fishing is not the only problem facing the animals; climate change is also causing them problems. The water temperature rises, the oxygen content drops due to over-fertilization and the times when fish spawn also changes. Some species of fish can handle it better than others. The plaice, for example, is doing well, says expert Froese on ZDF. Cod, herring and sprat, however, would have problems. Since the populations are so low, these species can only supply a small part of their spawning area with eggs during the spawning season – this exacerbates the problem.
Here too, one could start with the right catch quotas, says the scientist. The expert criticized that by “restricting catches for one or two years, the stocks could be brought back to the good high level.” But that didn’t happen – and the species is therefore in danger. While the instructions for action are clear from a scientific perspective, there was resistance in business.
Resistance to EU fishing quotas from business: “No more adequate fishing”
The head of the Thünen Institute for Baltic Sea Fisheries in Rostock, Christopher Zimmermann, rated the current catch quotas as a good compromise. The catch levels and conditions now set for western cod and western herring would allow the fishery to continue catching other species, especially flatfish, but not hinder the recovery of the herring stocksays Zimmermann. Especially with regard to the cod population, “environmental conditions – especially over-fertilization and climate change – must improve significantly in order to enable recovery,” the head of the Thünen Institute continued.
In view of the shrinking fish stocks and the restrictive catch quantities, German Baltic Sea fishermen say they are facing a situation that threatens their existence. The EU quotas “no longer allow for adequate fishing,” said the German Fisheries Association in Hamburg. However, the collapse of an entire industry is nothing unusual in the world of work throughout history. Climate protection could also significantly change the labor market, according to a study by Information service of the German Economic Institute (iwd). “Some established jobs will be eliminated, but new jobs and areas of responsibility will also be created,” says the iwd (bme with dpa).
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