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Stockholm University Baltic Sea Centre

Message to the EU Commissioner: Baltic fish stocks need better management

The special challenges of the Baltic Sea make the fish stocks particularly vulnerable, and require more careful management and a sharp reduction in fishing pressure. This was the message from the Baltic Sea Centre's researchers to the new EU Commissioner Costas Kadis, who visited Sweden last week.

Fisheries scientist Henrik Svedäng emphasised that fishing quotas need to be set far below MSY in a sensitive sea like the Baltic Sea and with the great uncertainties that exist in assessments and models. Photo: Marine Centre Simrishamn

Sweden is strongly represented in the European Parliament's Committee on Fisheries (PECH), with six Swedish MEPs sitting as full or substitute members. This week, MEPs from six different Swedish parties joined forces to welcome the new EU Commissioner for Fisheries and Oceans, Costas Kadis from Cyprus, to Sweden to discuss the urgent situation of fish stocks in the Baltic Sea.

The visit took place at the Marine Centre in Simrishamn, one of the few places in Sweden where local commercial fishing is still active. Among those invited to provide a deeper understanding of the challenges facing the Baltic Sea were Tina Elfwing, director of the Baltic Sea Centre, and fisheries scientist Henrik Svedäng.

Tina Elfwing explained the special conditions of the Baltic Sea and the major challenges it faces in terms of eutrophication and climate change. Fish play an important role in the ecosystem, which is not sufficiently taken into account in fisheries management and when deciding on fishing quotas.

"There is a tendency to blame environmental problems for the crisis in fish stocks," says Henrik Svedäng. "It is of course true that there are serious environmental problems in the Baltic Sea that affect fish, but this is something that fisheries management must adapt to. When stocks are declining, for whatever reason, you have to fish at a lower level".

Costas Kadis, EU Commissioner for Fisheries and Maritime Affairs visiting Simrishamn. Photo: Marine Centre Simrishamn
 

Collapsed fish stocks

Today, three of the commercial fish stocks in the Baltic Sea have collapsed completely, leading to total or partial closure of the fisheries. The situation is also very worrying for three of the four stocks still being fished: herring in the Central Baltic and the Gulf of Bothnia, and sprat. One of the main reasons is overfishing, says Henrik Svedäng.

"I tried to explain that it is possible to overfish stocks without intending to do so, because there are so many uncertainties in the stock estimates and in the models used," he adds. "For example, if a stock is fished more than you think, you can overestimate the size of the stock, which leads to the fishing quota being set higher than it should be. What is currently set in a closed room (by ICES) as a 'maximum sustainable level' has nothing to do with reality.

When the uncertainties are so great, and when fish stocks are part of such a fragile ecosystem as the Baltic Sea, fishing quotas must be set significantly lower than what MSY calculations  (maximum sustainable yield) indicate, Henrik Svedäng stresses.

 

New reforms ahead

Costas Kadis took up his post as Commissioner for Fisheries and Oceans in December 2024, and the visit to Sweden is one of his first official trips.

"I found the Commissioner interested in the knowledge we were trying to convey," says Tina Elfwing. "He also summarised his impressions at the end in a way that made it clear that he had taken the various messages on board."

Tina Elfwing, Director of the Baltic Sea Centre, described the special conditions of the Baltic Sea and the environmental challenges it faces. Photo: Marine Centre Simrishamn

Policy analyst Charles Berkow comments that it is unusual for an EU commissioner to visit Sweden. The fact that Costas Kadis chose to come here is probably due to the fact that the lively Swedish debate on fisheries has raised interest in the EU.

"Fisheries issues are considered important in Sweden, which is reflected in the strong representation in the Fisheries Committee," says Charles Berkow. "Unlike in many other countries, there is also a fairly broad cross-party consensus in favour of a more long-term, conservation-oriented fisheries policy. The EU Commissioner is no doubt curious to know why. I can also imagine that he will want to know how well what he hears from Sweden is anchored in society and within the various parties".

One of the new Commissioner's tasks is to review the Common Fisheries Policy. Later this spring, the European Commission will present a new pact to protect the oceans, the European Ocean Pact.

"Hopefully, politicians will realise that fish in the sea are an important part of the ecosystem and that current management needs to be radically changed if stocks are to recover from today's extremely low levels," says Henrik Svedäng.

Text: Lisa Bergqvist

EU Commissioner Costas Kadis flanked by five of the six Swedish members of the PECH Fisheries Committee; Jessica Polfjärd (M), Karin Karlsbro (L), Emma Wiesner (C), Isabella Lövin (MP) and Sofie Eriksson (S). Photo: Marine Centre Simrishamn
Theme
Plants, Animals and Nature - Theme page Oceans and Lakes - Theme page Climate and Environment - Theme page International Relations and Migration - Theme page

Last updated: April 3, 2025

Source: Baltic Sea Centre

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