The EU agrees on fishing quotas in the Baltic for 2024

The Fisheries Ministers of the European Union (EU) agreed this Tuesday on the total allowable catches (TAC) and quotas for fishing the species of greatest commercial interest in the Baltic during the year 2024. The Council of the EU, which brings together the Member States, indicated in a statement that the pact “is in line” with the scientific recommendations of the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES) and the Common Fisheries Policy, “as well as with the provisions of the multiannual plan for the populations of the Baltic Sea. The agreement provides for a 7% increase in the TAC for salmon in the Gulf of Finland. Furthermore, due to “low biomass levels”, ministers decided to continue setting TACs only for by-catch (those caught when the main fishing targets are other fish) for western herring, eastern cod and of western cod. For Gulf of Bothnia herring and central herring, “to take into account low biomass levels and allow stocks to recover”, the Council ...