BSEP116B Biodiversity in the Baltic Sea - Helcom

6.1.3 Major international frameworks
that regulate fisheries in the Baltic
Sea
Before 2006, coordination of the management of
the living resources in the Baltic Sea and the Belts
occurred under the Gdansk Convention (signed in
1973) and the preparation of science-based recommendations
for consideration of the Contracting
Parties was a duty of the International Baltic Sea
Fisheries Commission (IBSFC). Amongst others,
IBSFC adopted the Salmon Action Plan in 1997,
which is one of the first long-term management
plans adopted by an international fisheries organization.
Major Baltic fish stocks are currently managed
by a system developed under the EU Common Fisheries
Policy (CFP). The objective of the CFP is sustainable
exploitation and equitable distribution of a
resource which is under constant change. The scientific
advice for fisheries management is obtained
from the International Council for the Exploration
of the Sea (ICES). However, fisheries management
in the European Union is under change. There have
been moves towards greater involvement of stakeholders
in fisheries management as well as towards
management on a more regional scale. As a result
of this change, Regional Advisory Councils (RACs)
were recently established for a number of seas and
fisheries to bring a wide range of interest groups
together to discuss and deliver management advice
on fisheries. The Baltic Sea RAC (BS RAC) was set
up in 2006 to prepare and provide advice on the
management of the Baltic Sea fisheries. The BS RAC
consists of representatives from both the fishing
sector as well as the other interest groups affected
by the CFP. The BS RAC has three working groups:
pelagic fisheries, demersal fisheries, and fisheries
for salmon and sea trout.
6.1.4 Conclusions
Fisheries have substantial impacts on the Baltic
ecosystem, extending from the abiotic environment
to the upper trophic levels of the marine food
web, including mammals and seabirds. Evidence of
these impacts is accumulating continuously and the
effects strongly indicate an urgent need for effective
implementation of an Ecosystem Approach to
Fisheries Management (EAFM). A critical evaluation
of the related targets listed in the BSAP indicates
that while they are very ambitious, they are also in
need of immediate implementation to mitigate the
impacts of fisheries on the Baltic Sea ecosystem, and
by doing so to guarantee a stable and sustainable
fishery in future times. There is no doubt that there
are many activities that need to be undertaken by
the various competent authorities individually and
jointly to solve potential problems in relation to legal
authority, finances and human resources.
6.2 Maritime activities
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Figure 6.2.1. Shipping density based on data in the HELCOM Automatic
Identification System (AIS) in February 2007, shown together with Natura
2000 areas, Baltic Sea Protected Areas (BSPA), and Important Bird Areas
(IBA). The three different types of protected areas often overlap and are
shown in the order indicated in the figure legend, from the top down.
Roughly 15% of the world’s commercial fleet sails
in the Baltic Sea. More than one tanker per hour
passes in the intensely trafficked areas, totalling over
10 000 passages annually. Furthermore, maritime
transport in the Baltic is expected to increase by
64% between 2003 and 2020 (Anonymous 2006a).
Maritime traffic inflicts multiple pressures on the
Baltic Sea biodiversity, including the release of