Cod (Bacalhau) 'making a comeback'

Cod 'making a comeback'

Jessica Aldred
Guardian Unlimited
Friday October 19 2007


North Sea cod. Photograph: Corbis

Cod levels in the North Sea are showing signs of recovery, but limits must be enforced to ensure it continues, experts warned today.

For the first time in six years, the annual report on fish stocks in the north east Atlantic by the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (Ices) has not called for a complete ban on North Sea fishing.

The report showed that for many groundfish – fish that live most of their life on or near the sea bottom such as flatfish, cod, haddock and pollock – stock size is low and fishing pressures still high. However, there are positive signs of decreases in fishing pressure.

Martin Pastoors, the chairman of the advisory committee on fishery management (ACFM), which reviewed the Ices findings, said: "Our scientific surveys show that the number of young fish has increased, although only to half of the long-term average.

"These young fish could contribute substantially to the recovery of the North Sea cod stock. We also observe a decrease in mortality which is a welcome signal."

To continue this recovery, Ices, which advises governments on fishing quotas and coordinates marine research in the North Atlantic, has recommended that catches be limited to less than 50% of the 2006 catches in the North Sea, Eastern channel and Skagerrak, an area off the coasts of Norway, Sweden and Denmark.

Cod fishing in Kattegat, the Irish Sea and the west of Scotland, should be reduced to zero as the stocks are at dangerously low levels, Ices warned.

The committee of scientists said overall removals - including fish landings, discards and unaccounted-for removals - of less than 22,000 tonnes would allow the fish stock to recover to the minimum target of 70,000 tonnes by 2009.

"[Limits] should include measures to constrain discards and illegal catches," Mr Pastoors said.

"This should give these young fish the opportunity to grow and to reproduce and thereby to contribute to the recovery of this important fish stock."

Ices calculates whether a stock is considered to be within safe biological limits by looking at its spawning stock biomass, estimates of fishing mortality and catch estimates. Ices classifies cod as being "at risk of being harvested unsustainably and suffering reduced reproductive capacity".

Over the last five years on average 83% of cod landed internationally have been juvenile cod aged one to three.

Scientists and conservationists say that for cod populations to recover, juvenile cod must be allowed to survive long enough to reproduce, and mature fish given the chance to spawn.

This would mean prohibiting fishing in some areas to avoid the capture of juveniles, and seasonal or area closures to protect spawning fish. Fishing practices must also be improved to reduce levels of discarding, experts say.


Other fish

The stock of Norwegian spring-spawning herring remains at a high level, and is by far the largest stock in the Ices area, measured at 12m tonnes. "The pressure on this stock is low and therefore the outlook is very positive," the report says.

Scientists also reported a recovery in pout stocks off Norway, after closing the fishery because of low stock-size several years ago.

Ices has recommended larger reductions in catches of blue whiting, after finding that the stock is declining rapidly due to a much lower supply of young fish.

The outlook for anchovy in the Bay of Biscay is still poor, the report found.

The number of young fish in 2006 and 2007 was reported as "very low". Because anchovy is a short-lived species, there are very few adult fish in the population and Ices has recommended that the fishery remains closed.

Ices scientists have also expressed concerns over spurdog, porbeagle and rays, that have been unintentionally caught in nets.

The report comes ahead of the start of the annual European commission negotiations on catch quotas which begin in Brussels in December.

Responding to the report, the WWF said that the EU and the fisheries ministers must heed the warnings made by Ices.

"While Ices report indications of a glimmer of hope for North Sea cod the situation needs to be managed in a precautionary manner if we are to sustain real recovery," said Helen McLachlan, senior marine policy officer at WWF.

"It will be critical to ensure that juvenile cod are allowed to grow and reproduce. We have had similar scenarios in the past but blown it by fishing out incoming juveniles.

"Member states need to adopt rigorous measures to reduce the capture of young cod as well as lowering overall levels of cod discards."

North Sea cod stock declined severely during the late 1990s and early 2000s because of overfishing. Most cod stocks in UK and European waters are at historic lows.

Last year, for the fifth year running, the same survey called for a complete ban on cod fishing in the North Sea.

European commission ministers ignored these recommendations and instead recommended a compromise cutback of 25% in the cod quota, as well as smaller reductions in plaice, sole and hake allowances.

"This is a real test for the European commission. We will soon see if their quota proposal will put forward the necessary actions for the recovery of stocks, including the protection of young cod," Ms McLachlan said.

Fonte: The Guardian