Balticsea 2020

Reduction of phosphorus in detergents

The European Parliament confirmed last week the agreement of the limitation of phosphorus in detergents and dishwasher detergents within EU.

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New report: Ecological effects of ghost net retrieval in the Baltic Sea

As much as six tonnes of ghost nets were taken from the Baltic Sea during the pilot project conducted by WWF Poland in cooperation with fishermen. Lost or abandoned nets is a real threat to fish, birds and marine mammals as they retain up to 20 percent of their fishing capacity. The number of ghost nets lying on the seabed is considered to be a thousand.

WWF Poland, along with fishermen and divers cleared the polsish maritime area of ghost nets for 24 days. In total they cleared six tonnes of ghost nets.
The project began in March 2011 and the main goal was to clear the Baltic Sea, in the Polish territorial waters, from ghost nets. Ghost nets constitute threats to living organisms in the Baltic Sea and are dangerous to birds, marine mammals and aslo humans. Research shows that lost nets keep their fishing capacities up to 20 percent during the first three months and up to six percent after two years.  

The project is financed by BalticSea2020 and last Monday, December 12, 2011 the project was presented at a final conference in Warsaw, Poland.

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New report: The Baltic Sea – a model for regional fisheries management

The Commission proposal for a reform of the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) includes measures as regards regionalization, however without explicitly encouraging member states to cooperate in a region. Axel Wenblad, former Director General of the Swedish Board of Fisheries, has in the report "The Baltic Sea - a model for Regional Fisheries Management" developed a model for how to implement a regional management of fisheries in the Baltic region. One advantage of the regional model is for example a more active engagement between the member states which can increase the efficiency of the implementation of the EU's Common Fisheries Policy. A prerequisite for the success is that member states share the same goals and ambitions.

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