Next year’s total allowable catches (TACs) and national quotas for the 10 most commercially important fish stocks in the Baltic Sea have been set by the European Council.
In line with the European Commission proposals based on scientific advice from the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES), the agreement includes a rollover for Western cod (5,597 metric tons) and an increase in catches for central herring ( (up 20 percent to 229,355 MT) and sprat (up one percent to 262,310 MT).
For the remaining stocks, ministers decided on a reduction for Riga herring (down seven percent to 28,999 MT), salmon in the Gulf of Finland (down five percent to 10,003 MT), main baisin salmon (down five percent to 91,132 MT), Eastern cod (down eight percent to 28,388 MT), Bothnian herring (down 40 percent to 84,599 MT), Western herring (down 39 percent to 17,309 MT) and plaice (down 10 percent to 7,076 MT).
The council said the agreed quantities take into account the commitment to the objectives of the EU Common Fisheries Policy (CFP), including the achievement of maximum sustainable yield (MSY), the principles of the multiannual management plan for the Baltic sea, and scientific advice.
In addition to setting TACs and national quotas on some species, the council confirmed the extension to 2018 of those management measures currently in place to improve the state of the stock Baltic cod, comprising bag limitations in recreational fisheries and closure periods, with derogations for small coastal fisheries.
Ministers also decided to postpone discussions on measures on marine eel fisheries to a later stage to discuss a pan-European strategy to ensure the protection and sustainable use of the stock.
