BRUSSELS - The European Commission tabled a proposal Sep. 4 calling for big cuts in Baltic Sea fishing quotas for 2008.
The Commission is proposing a reduction of 23 percent in the EU quota for eastern Baltic cod, from 40, 805 tonnes to 31,561 tonnes, and a cut of 33 percent in western Baltic cod, from 26,696 tonnes to 17,930 tonnes.
Cod stocks in particular are at dangerously low levels and scientists have also advised the EC that the survival rate of young Baltic salmon is deteriorating, and that there is a need to restrain catches further. As a result, it is poroposed that there will be a 15 percent reduction in the salmon quota.
On the positive side, the state of the central Baltic herring stock is good.
The proposed quotas for cod are based on the provisions of a multi-annual plan to rebuild and maintain Baltic cod stocks, which was agreed in June this year. The new proposal will be discussed at October's Fisheries Council meeting.
Commenting on this proposal, Joe Borg, Commissioner for Fisheries and Maritime Affairs, said: "I encourage member states to work more closely with the industry and the Commission to ensure that the multi-annual plan is fully applied. This will be essential to the rebuilding of the cod stocks and the future of the related fleets in the Baltic Sea."
