Total marine fisheries extractions by country in the Baltic Sea

200 Total marine fisheries extractions by country in the Baltic Sea: 1950-present, Rossing, Booth and Zeller
the Baltic Sea‖ was adopted in 2006 to replace the IBSFC (Anon., 2009). Russia continues to report
landings to ICES, as is the case for all the Baltic countries. Total allowable catches (TAC‘s) are set based on
ICES recommendations but are then sanctioned by the EU in accordance with its agreement with Russia.
The EU is planning a revision of its Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) in 2012, and although Russia is not
bound by the CFP, the recommendations for the revised policy would hopefully also apply to the
management of Russia‘s fisheries in the Baltic Sea. Russia should aim to align its fisheries objectives with
these upcoming revisions to the CFP in order to work toward harmonizing fisheries management in an
effort to facilitate movement towards ecosystem-based management. An important recommendation for
the revised CFP, which also pertains to Russia, is increased transparency in fisheries data collection,
decision-making and dissemination of information to all stakeholders, including the general public.
Russia has a history of nondisclosure with nationally held data, particularly with respect to fisheries
catches during the Soviet era. During the Cold War, fisheries data in Russia were considered a ―state
secret‖ (V. Spirodonov, pers. comm., P.P. Shirshov Institute of Oceanology). A major concern for Russian
fisheries in the Baltic Sea is a lack of consistent data made readily available to the Baltic and global
community (ICES, 2005; 2007). Also, records that could have shed some light on Russia‘s historical
catches were lost during the collapse of the USSR (S. Shibaev, unpubl. data). The time series of
commercial catches is therefore incomplete and information on unreported catches, discards and
recreational catches is even poorer. Russia should reduce discarding and unreported landings. Complete
(100%) observer cover, video surveillance and satellite Vessel Monitoring Systems would substantially
increase the accuracy of total (including IUU) catches which would in turn properly inform regulatory and
policy decisions. Improved monitoring and enforcement are important, but increased transparency is even
more crucial as it can enhance the quality of fisheries data and improve fisheries management and policy
decisions. For an ecosystem-based management approach to be effective in the Baltic Sea, countries such
as Russia need to improve the collection of data and make these widely available for the purpose of
improving fisheries management and accountability in maintaining a publicly owned resource.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
We would like to thank the Baltic Sea 2020 Foundation for funding this project, and Dr. Vassily
Spirodonov (Nakhimov P.P. Shirshov Institute of Oceanology), Konstantin Zgurovsky (WWF Russia) and
Maris Plikshs (Latvian Fish Resource Agency) for providing valuable insight, information and data. The
Sea Around Us Project is a scientific collaboration between the University of British Columbia and the Pew
Environment Group.
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