EU Commission misses opportunity to halt dolphin and porpoise deaths this winter

CCB • December 5, 2019

 

The European Commission said today that it will not take emergency measures this winter to tackle the tragic death of dolphins caught in fishing nets.

 

Last winter, around 1200 cetaceans – almost all identified as common dolphins – washed ashore along the French Atlantic coast.  85 percent of these dolphins died after being caught up in fishing nets.
The entanglement of unwanted animals caught in nets is referred to as ‘bycatch’ and it is considered the greatest threat to cetaceans in European waters, with many thousands dying each year.
In July 2019,  22 environmental NGOs formally requested that the European Commission take legal action  against 15 EU governments for failing in their legal duty to protect dolphins, porpoises and whales from bycatch.

The group also called for emergency protection measures to be introduced for Baltic harbour porpoises and North East Atlantic common dolphins to immediately prevent further deaths in these populations under imminent threat due to fishing activities.

Such emergency measures, which have a strong legal basis and are supported by comprehensive scientific evidence, should include:
• temporarily or permanently closing fisheries in key areas where bycatch is a problem,
• implementing year round on board observations and electronic monitoring,
• requiring mandatory use of acoustic devices that act as a deterrent to Baltic porpoises,

 

But at an event on bycatch today , the Commission’s DG MARE postponed its decision on emergency measures, citing a need for scientific advice that will not be available until spring 2020. In the meantime, thousands of cetaceans are at risk of dying from bycatch this winter.

 

ClientEarth Marine Habitat lawyer John Condon said:

“While it is good to see that the European Commission is taking steps to consider emergency measures, this delayed action to rescue dolphins, porpoises and whales from fishing nets could have disastrous consequences this winter, just like last year. The Commission should immediately adopt emergency measures – which it is empowered to do in these conditions by the EU’s Common Fisheries Policy.”

Sarah Dolman from the marine charity Whale and Dolphin Conservation says:

“We have known about poor implementation of EU laws to protect dolphins, porpoises and whales from bycatch in European waters for decades. We face a biodiversity crisis, bycatch kills more dolphins and porpoises than any other pressure, and so we need the European Commission to act now to compel Member States to halt these needless deaths.”

The event on tackling the bycatch of cetaceans was hosted by Rory Palmer MEP, chaired by Jackie Jones MEP, and organised by  ClientEarth , Whale and Dolphin Conservation , Seas At Risk , Coalition Clean Baltic (CCB) and the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW). The Commission’s announcement follows on from a  written response  to a question submitted by Mr Palmer MEP.

CCB is looking for a Network Officer to join our team at the CCB International Secretariat

By CCB • April 9, 2025
Coalition Clean Baltic – CCB is a politically independent network, uniting 27 environmental non-profit organizations, as well as partners and experts from 11 countries surrounding the Baltic Sea. The main goal of CCB is to promote the protection and improvement of the environment and natural resources of the Baltic Sea region by encouraging new and constructive approaches and engaging people to become part of the solution instead of part of the problem. CCB Secretariat is based in Uppsala, Sweden.

Attacks on NGOs: 570+ Organisations Join Forces to Defend Civil Society

By CCB • April 7, 2025
European civil society organisations (CSOs) are currently facing an attack coming from certain Members of the European Parliament. Spearheaded by some MEPs from the European People’s Party (EPP) and by far-right groups, this attack resorts to misleading arguments to fabricate a scandal. This portrayal has been amplified through the media, with notable exceptions of articles that attempted to clarify this misleading narrative. European CSOs are crucial to ensure the voices of citizens from different parts of Europe are heard in the EU institutions. Attacks against civil society are unfortunately not new and are exacerbated by this harmful idea. Furthermore, for-profit corporate lobbying is through the roof when compared to non-profit advocacy. In 2024, the 50 corporations with the largest lobbying budgets collectively spent nearly €200 million on lobbying the EU alone (66% more than in 2015). Comparing this to the funding environmental NGOs receive under the LIFE programme - €15.6 million annually of a €700 million yearly budget - truly shows the weakness of this ‘scandal’. This is why over 570 civil society organisations from 40 countries, including all EU Member States, have joined forces to call on those in power to act now and ensure that civil society is adequately funded and enabled to share our crucial perspectives . In this statement, we address: The source of this false narrative; Inaccurate claims made about how CSOs obtain and use funding; Why it’s paramount that CSOs receive sufficient funding; The need for civil dialogue to enable CSOs participation. Democracy is about the right of citizens to be collectively heard for building an inclusive society and a shared European future; properly funded independent CSOs are a crucial tool for that. We call on decision-makers to ensure civil society organisations can thrive and play their role in interacting with policy-makers in order to have a more fully informed decision-making process. Read the full statement here . -END Civil Society Europe (CSE) is the coordination of civil society organisations at EU level. Through its membership, CSE unites EU-level membership-based organisations that reach out to millions of people active in or supported by not-for-profits and civil society organisations across the EU. CSE was created by several civil society organisations as a follow-up to the European Year of Citizens and was established as an international not-for-profit under Belgian law in 2016. Since then, it has become the point of reference for EU institutions on transversal issues concerning civil dialogue and civic space.