The European Commission has tabled its proposal on fishing opportunities in the Baltic Sea for 2012, including increased total allowable catches for Baltic cod stocks and some herring stocks.
15 September 2011: The European Commission (EC) has tabled its proposal on fishing opportunities in the Baltic Sea for 2012. The overall aim of the proposal is to make fisheries in the Baltic Sea environmentally and economically sustainable by following the recommendations of scientists.
Based on scientific advice, the EC proposes to: increase total allowable catches for both stocks of Baltic cod and for two stocks of herring (Western and the Gulf of Bothnia); decrease the remaining stocks, in particular salmon, given the stocks’ poor state; and limit the number of days at sea for fishing vessels to the levels established last year. The proposal will be discussed by the EU member States’ ministers in October 2011.
On a related note, the European Commission published the ex-post evaluation of the current protocol to fisheries partnership agreement between the EU and Micronesia, as well as the ex-post evaluation of the current protocol to fisheries partnership agreement between the EU and Solomon Islands. [EU Press Release] [Micronesia Evaluation] [Solomon Islands Evaluation]