Reeling In the Trawlers: EU Takes On Overfishing

[unhappycamper]

http://www.spiegel.de/international/europe/eu-mandates-more-sustainable-fishing-practices-while-stocks-rise-a-938724.html



Fish stocks have made surprising comebacks in the North and Baltic seas. But much remains to be done. Beginning in January, new EU laws will impose more sustainable practices with stricter quotas and by-catch rules.

Reeling In the Trawlers: EU Takes On Overfishing
By Philip Bethge
December 13, 2013 – 12:06 PM

When the men open the net on the ship's deck, fat codfish slap into plastic fish baskets. Slippery plaice and flounder, rough as sandpaper, gasp for air. Turbot the size of two strong fisherman's hands slither between silvery herring and flat dabs.

A particularly large cod with its mouth wide open lies on top of the pile. "It has to weigh more than six kilos (13 lbs.)," estimates Martina Bleil as she looks down at the fish. "It's in great shape." The female is about 8 years old, says Bleil, a fish biologist. "It would have been spawning again soon."

Bleil works for the Thünen Institute for Baltic Sea Fisheries (Thünen OF) in the northern German port city of Rostock, an agency that is part of Germany's Federal Ministry of Agriculture. The scientist and her colleagues have made a big haul on this clear November day in the Bay of Mecklenburg. "We are headed in a very good direction with fish stocks in the Baltic Sea," says Bleil. "Anyone who eats plaice or herring doesn't have to feel guilty about it anymore."

Something amazing is happening in the seas off Germany's coasts, where most species were long considered overfished. But now some stocks are recovering at an astonishing rate. Experts are seeing a significant upward trend in the North Sea, and even more so in the Baltic Sea.