Set sustainable, ecosystem-based fishing opportunities for 2026

The statement argues that current scientific advice for fishing limits is insufficient for ecosystem recovery and that the EU has failed its legal obligations to end overfishing and achieve Good Environmental Status. It calls for catch limits to be set significantly below maximum scientific advice, particularly for forage fish and mixed fisheries, to safeguard marine biodiversity and resilience against climate change.

• The EU has failed to meet its legal obligations to end overfishing in all its waters and to achieve Good Environmental Status (GES) by the 2020 deadline.
• Current scientific advice used for catch limits is deemed unfit for purpose because it does not fully account for ecosystem integrity, precautionary needs, or rapid recovery goals.
• Specific regional crises persist, including the cod crisis in the Baltic Sea and high overfishing rates in the Mediterranean (52% of assessed stocks) and Black Seas (21% of assessed stocks).
• Overfishing and destructive fishing practices are identified as primary drivers of marine biodiversity loss over the last 40 years, reducing the ability of wildlife to mitigate and withstand climate change impacts.
• The document recommends setting catch limits below the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES) single-stock advice, particularly for forage fish to ensure food supply for seabirds and marine mammals.

APA

ClientEarth (2025). Set sustainable, ecosystem-based fishing opportunities for 2026. https://www.clientearth.org/media/sxppu24h/250829-ngo-letter-to-danish-eu-council-presidency-on-fos-for-2026.pdf

Chicago

ClientEarth. Set sustainable, ecosystem-based fishing opportunities for 2026. 2025. https://www.clientearth.org/media/sxppu24h/250829-ngo-letter-to-danish-eu-council-presidency-on-fos-for-2026.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |author=ClientEarth |title=Set sustainable, ecosystem-based fishing opportunities for 2026 |date=29 August 2025 |url=https://www.clientearth.org/media/sxppu24h/250829-ngo-letter-to-danish-eu-council-presidency-on-fos-for-2026.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{clientearth2025set, author = {{ClientEarth}}, title = {{Set sustainable, ecosystem-based fishing opportunities for 2026}}, publisher = {ClientEarth}, year = {2025}, month = aug, url = {https://www.clientearth.org/media/sxppu24h/250829-ngo-letter-to-danish-eu-council-presidency-on-fos-for-2026.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }