On Friday, the 29th of September, Baltic fishermen gathered for a protest in Palanga, where the European Commission is gathered for a meeting to discuss the reduction of fishing quotas for sprat and herring in 2024.
Lithuanian, Estonian, Latvian and Polish fishermen gathered for a protest outside a hotel in Palanga, where Virginijus Sinkevičius, Commissioner for the Environment, Oceans and Fisheries, is holding a conference regarding the future of the Baltic Sea.
The objective of the protest is to shine a spotlight on the proposal for the reduction of fishing quotas for sprat and herring in 2024, which the EC has on the table.
Businessmen insist that the proposed reduction of quotas does not correspond to researchers’ recommendations or positions held by EU member states.
Fishermen and Fish Processors Association Baltijos zvejas director Algirdas Ausra told BNS that
that such a reduction would be destructive for Baltic fisheries and that only Russian fishermen would benefit from it, as EU quotas don’t apply to them.
“A lot of sprat and herring are supplied to Ukraine, so it’s not entirely impossible that Russian fishermen and Russia’s policy would only benefit from the reduced EU quotas,” he warns.
Fishermen divided into two groups of 15 because Palanga municipality did not permit a simultaneous gathering of 100 people.
The EU Commission prepared to adopt a regulation that will severely limit fishing in the Baltic Sea and Riga Gulf starting with 2024.
The proposed restrictions will have a catastrophic effect on Latvia’s fisheries and the fishing industry, according to the Latvian Fishermen’s Association.
The proposal that dictates specific fish stores and fish group fishing opportunities in the Baltic Sea and associated waters amends established regulations makes European Commission’s positions when it comes to fishing and contradicts recommendations from the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES) and the Baltic Sea Advisory Council. Nevertheless, the EU Commission is examining the possibility of restricting fishing opportunities for 2024 without argumentation and justification, and with incomprehensible motivation, says the association’s board chairman Viesturs Ūlis.
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