Tens of thousands of whales and dolphins die in European waters each year in fishing nets
Tens of thousands of dolphins, porpoises and whales (collectively known as cetaceans) are dying every year in European waters as a result of being bycaught in fishing gear – and some populations are coming perilously close to extinction.
A new EIA report released today (6 May) reveals that the degree of bycatch is so serious that there are cetacean populations where fisheries bycatch thresholds have been exceeded in European waters, including five that are critically endangered, endangered or vulnerable.
In Catch of the Day – The deadly impacts of cetacean bycatch in European waters, we identify the 15 populations of cetaceans known to be impacted by bycatch, including eight of 13 populations of harbour porpoises.
Harbour porpoises are especially hard-hit, with more than 35,000 trapped each year, many of them in static underwater nets. Common dolphins also suffer greatly, with the bycatch level for this population exceeding the limit by six times in 2020.
EIA Senior Ocean Campaigner Sarah Dolman said: “Bycatch of whales, dolphins and porpoises has been impacting populations and causing suffering for decades in European waters, despite strong existing laws to prevent it.
“To prevent the potential extinction of some sub-populations, such as harbour porpoises in the Baltic Proper, Belt Sea and the Iberian Peninsula, immediate, urgent and effective law enforcement is necessary.”
The European Commission has begun taking action against eight EU member states (Bulgaria, Croatia, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain and Sweden) for failing to monitor and prevent the bycatch of cetaceans and other protected marine species, but the measures implemented by national governments are insufficient to effectively reduce it anywhere in Europe.
Gillnets (anchored static nets hanging in the water) and driftnets (which hang in the water but are not anchored on the seabed) are among the biggest culprits and are globally recognised as having the greatest impacts on the widest range of toothed cetaceans and other protected species, including seabirds and turtles, throughout European waters.
The EU Fleet Register identifies 28,388 vessels using static gears in European waters, including gillnets and other entangling nets.
“Previous examples, such as the vaquita porpoise and Maui dolphin – two of the most endangered cetaceans in the world for whom bycatch has driven their declines – have shown that early action is key,” added Dolman.
Bycaught dolphin (c) CSIP-ZSL
“Fishing with harmful gear, particularly static nets, should be a priority for action. European governments need to put robust fleet-wide measures in place to end cetacean bycatch, including for the most vulnerable cetacean populations facing extinction.”
Catch of the Day makes several key recommendations to European governments, including:
- the European Commission should continue current infringement procedures and pursue new infringement actions against other member states which are not fully implementing the Habitats Directive to prevent cetacean bycatch
- given the high levels of porpoise bycatch in Irish, Celtic and Norwegian waters, the relevant governments should implement strict measures to continually reduce bycatch
- governments should implement longer-term strategies that consider structural changes to the relevant fishing fleets to minimise cetacean bycatch, including a transition from gillnets to alternative fishing gears with lower impacts
- the implementation of effective bycatch management plans across Europe.
