WWF calls for one-year suspension of wild salmon fishing in Baltic Sea and Gulf of Bothnia

WWF is calling for a one-year suspension of wild salmon fishing in the Baltic Sea and the Gulf of Bothnia due to critically low spawning stock levels. The organization reports a dramatic decline in the number of salmon migrating from the Baltic to rivers in the Gulf of Bothnia over the past two years. For instance, the number of salmon returning to the Tornio River has decreased by 70 percent, with breeding stock levels dropping to less than half of the target.

The cause of this decline remains unknown. Matti Ovaska, a leading fishing expert at WWF Finland, emphasizes that in this uncertain situation, fishing for wild salmon must be halted for the coming year. “All excess mortality of salmon must be reduced to zero now. A temporary cessation of fishing is the only way we can attempt to impact the number of salmon that will survive to spawn,” he asserts.

WWF believes that fishing for stocked salmon in the Gulf of Finland can continue, but the fishing season should start later. To avoid catching wild salmon, fishing should open in the summer only after the wild salmon migrating to the Gulf of Bothnia have passed through the Gulf of Finland, as stocked salmon typically arrive later.

Additionally, WWF is concerned about the status of herring. The Finnish Parliament is currently reviewing fishing quotas for the Baltic Sea for the upcoming year, which also includes herring. Initial restrictions on herring fishing appear to have offered some relief to the stocks. However, WWF argues that the catch of herring should not be increased next year. The final decision on fishing quotas will be made by the EU’s Agriculture and Fisheries Council at the end of October, based on the positions of member states and the European Commission.