Coalition Clean Baltic urges Danish authorities to stop the construction of Lynetteholm island
Coalition Clean Baltic • September 26, 2023
Coalition Clean Baltic calls to stop the Lynetteholm project that may result in environmental disaster in the Baltic Sea.
September 2023 - In 2021 the majority of the Danish Parliament adopted a Construction Act which allowed the constructor By & Havn and the Ministry of Transport to start the Lynetteholm project: an artificial peninsula in the Copenhagen harbour as a new district area in the city, that will house 35,000 residents and 35,000 workplaces. This project was approved despite Swedish criticism and without consultation of all the Baltic Sea countries.
In the same year, an Executive Order was introduced, nullifying the environmental laws in place and preventing complains. The only way for citizens, municipalities and associations to be heard is to raise a case in the national courts.
Environmental issues
The construction of this artificial island may block the flow of salt, oxygen-rich water into the Baltic Sea.
The result of the Lynetteholm project can have significant, irreversible, negative environmental consequences for the Baltic Sea. Even minimal changes in the water flow into the Baltic Sea may affect the entire marine environment of all the countries around the Baltic Sea.
Regardless of the consultation responses, the ongoing Espoo negotiations with Sweden and the Climate Movement´s lawsuit, the construction of Lynetteholm continues.
Citizens and NGOs actions to stop the project
In 2021, Coalition Clean Baltic (CCB) called to postpone the the adoption of the Lynetteholm project through a letter sent to the Danish authorities, which was also shared with the European Commissioner for the Environment, Oceans and Fisheries , as well as with Directors General of respective DG of the European Commission and the Chair of the Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference.
In 2022 Coalition Clean Baltic (CCB) signed another letter, together with other 16 NGOs, to complain to the EU about Lynetteholm blocking water flow.
In 2023 updated information were published about the Lynetteholm project. This document contains the most updated information including those deliberations that have happened namely that:
- updates about the Danish Climate Movement´s lawsuit;
- the report of the 'professional reference group’ set by Transport Agency with four independent professors (Prof. Katarina Elofsson, Department of Environmental Science, Aarhus University; Prof. Lone Kørnøv, Department of Planning, Aalborg University; Prof. Stiig Markager, Department of Ecoscience, Aarhus University; Prof. Thorbjørn Joest Andersen, Department of Geosciences and Nature Management, University of Copenhagen) released on 5 March 2023 which states that “blocking effects are cross border and can potentially affect the entire Baltic Sea. One consideration might be to change the design of the project, so that the outermost part does not include Kongedybet”. Individual opinion of Prof. Stiig Markager is i.a. that “the calculations carried out by DHI are not sufficient to reject a significant effect on the salinity in the Baltic Sea. This effect can occur throughout the Baltic Sea and will thus affect all countries around the Baltic Sea. Furthermore, any effect on the stability of the Baltic Sea's water column will produce derivative effects that can accumulate over time and potentially affect salinity beyond the immediate effect on salt transport”. According to Prof. Markager, the implementation of the project in its current state will have significant negative impact on environmental status of the Baltic Sea, hence also constituting a violation of the EU MSFD;
- the supplemented EIA report for the project changes in the Lynetteholm project was released for public consultation until 8 May 2023;
- the completion of the Espoo Convention transboundary consultation process is unknown.
In addition, in March 2023 CCB shared its concern to the
Helsinki Commission (HELCOM) regarding the Lynetteholm project and
submitted documents to the Informal consultation session of the Helsinki Commission (IC HELCOM 1-2023). In June 2023 CCB
submitted new documents to the Informal consultation session of the Helsinki Commission (IC HOD 3-2023).
The consultation on the Lynetteholm project by all Baltic Sea countries is a legal duty incumbent on Danish authorities.
Until all affected countries and organisations are consulted we call to immediately stop the Lynetteholm project.
27 October 2026 , Luxembourg - EU fisheries ministers increased central Baltic and Bothnian herring catch limits beyond the European Commission’s proposals and significantly increased the sprat catch limit, falling short of the precaution needed to protect the role of herring and sprat in the Baltic Sea food web. The Council also rejected proposed cuts to accidental catches of severely depleted cod and western Baltic herring populations. NGOs warn that fishing limits remain too high and urge EU ministers to follow the agreement with concrete plans to rebuild depleted fish populations. Herring: further measures needed to safeguard fragile recovery and protect vulnerable populations EU fisheries ministers increased the catch limit for central Baltic herring to 165 228 tonnes, a 71% increase compared with 2026. The population has shown signs of improvement after years of depletion. However, the central Baltic herring population remains vulnerable, and rebuilding must restore healthy age and size structures as well as overall abundance. Although below the scientific headline catch advice, the Council’s decision exceeds the Commission’s proposal, which was more precautionary and recovery-oriented and should have been followed by the ministers. “Ministers have recognised the need for caution, but still allowed more herring to be caught than the Commission proposed. These vulnerable populations need a stronger chance of lasting recovery, with clear rebuilding targets, a timetable for reaching them and measures that are implemented and enforced ,” said Cathrine Pedersen Schirmer, Senior Fisheries Policy Advisor at Coalition Clean Baltic. For Bothnian herring , ministers retained the three-month spawning closure but increased the Total Allowable Catch (TAC) by 12% , despite the population remaining below healthy levels. The Commission’s proposed TAC for this fish population was already a compromise between population rebuilding and maintaining fishing opportunities. The agreed higher TAC poses a risk to the recovery of the Bothnian herring population and creates increasing uncertainty for the industry. “ Fisheries decisions must also account for the risks to fish population recovery. Even catch limits within the ICES advice range can leave stocks at risk of remaining below the biomass levels that should trigger recovery measures. Fishing opportunities must give depleted populations a real chance to recover to healthy level s,” said Beatrice Rindevall, Chairperson of the Swedish Society for Nature Conservation. The Gulf of Riga herring TAC was also set above NGOs’ recommendations, with an increase of 11% compared with 2026, despite the recent decline in its spawning biomass and its importance to the Baltic food web. Lower limits for this fish population would have better supported population health and long-term resilience. Sprat: recovery must extend to the Baltic Sea food web The sprat agreement remains a significant concern. The Council’s decision, in line with the Commission’s proposal, to increase the sprat catch limit by 44% to 291 590 tonnes exceeds the level NGOs recommended. Although the population has increased, the agreed limit does not sufficiently account for sprat’s importance as prey for cod, salmon, seabirds and other marine wildlife, persistent catch misreporting or the risk of catching vulnerable herring alongside sprat. “ Herring and sprat are vital to the Baltic Sea ecosystem. When setting fishing opportunities, decision makers must leave enough prey in the water to support predators like cod and salmon, to rebuild ecosystem health and align with the EU’s nature restoration ambitions ,” said Justyna Zajchowska, Fisheries Lead for WWF Baltic Sea Programme. Salmon: no increase in catch limits, but stronger protection needed NGOs welcome the decision not to increase salmon fishing opportunities. However, fishing should be restricted to compensatory hatchery-released salmon or salmon from rivers where populations are at full reproductive capacity. Fishing on vulnerable wild populations must be avoided and, if returning salmon numbers are insufficient, additional adaptive management measures should be deployed immediately, considering the impact of recent poor spawning runs. “ Good returns to some large rivers are encouraging, but they do not demonstrate recovery across the Baltic region. Many smaller river populations remain in serious difficulty. We need fishing restrictions that protect those vulnerable salmon throughout their migration and allow enough fish to reach their spawning grounds ,” said Thomas Johansson, Chairman of Östersjölaxälvar i Samverkan and Secretary General of the Baltic Salmon Fund. Cod, western Baltic herring and plaice: Council misses opportunity to curb bycatch Both Baltic cod populations and western Baltic herring remain severely depleted. Targeted cod fisheries remain closed, while ministers retained the small-scale fisheries exemption for western Baltic herring. Yet ministers agreed bycatch quotas well above the Commission’s proposals for 2027 and at the same level as 2026, falling short of the protection sought by NGOs. For all three populations, the agreed bycatch quotas permit continued catches despite ICES advice for zero catch. The Council’s decision to increase the plaice TAC to 11,237 tonnes , well above the level NGOs recommended, missed an opportunity to secure a reduction in accidental cod catches. The decision also does not reflect the very low reported landings of this species. Declining weight and condition of plaice also warrant greater caution. The TAC must be combined with effective enforcement of mandatory selective gear to reduce cod bycatch and the implementation of the landing obligation. Annual fishing limits must support lasting recovery The Council’s decisions on Baltic Sea fishing opportunities for 2027 are not ambitious enough to secure restoration of all Baltic Sea fish populations. These decisions should be seen in the context of last year’s joint commitment by the European Commission and Baltic Sea Member States to seek dedicated scientific advice from ICES on rebuilding pathways for fish populations. In the absence of such rebuilding-oriented advice, and whilst we are waiting for it, decisions should be more cautious and based on the available recovery-focused catch options provided by the scientists in their traditional advice. Fisheries management must also support EU marine restoration objectives and the achievement of good environmental status in the Baltic Sea. Restoring fish populations and food webs is essential to the recovery of the sea itself and to the long-term future of Baltic fisheries and the coastal communities that depend on them. ENDS *** Further information: Link to Council decision Link to Commission’s proposal Link to Joint NGO recommendations on Baltic Sea fishing opportunities for 2027 Media contact: Beatrice Rindevall, Chairperson, Swedish Society for Nature Conservation, ordforande@naturskyddsforeningen.se Cathrine Pedersen Schirmer , Senior Fisheries Policy Advisor, Coalition Clean Baltic, Cathrine@ccb.se Justyna Zajchowska , Fisheries Lead, WWF Baltic Sea Programme, jzajchowska@wwf.pl Dr. Katja Hockun, Senior Expert Meeresschutz, Deutsche Umwelthilfe e.V., hockun@duh.de Konrad Stralka , Executive Director, BalticWaters, konrad.stralka@balticwaters.org Magda Jentgena , Baltic Sea and Freshwater Programme Manager, Pasaules Dabas Fonds, mjentgena@pdf.lv Regan McEnroe , Chairperson, Nature and Youth Sweden, ordforande@faltbiologerna.se Tapani Veistola, Executive Director, Suomen luonnonsuojeluliitto (Finnish Association for Nature Conservation), tapani.veistola@sll.fi Thomas Johansson , Chairman, Östersjölaxälvar i Samverkan, and Secretary General, Baltic Salmon Fund, thomas@balticsalmonfund.com .
Uppsala, 31 August 2026 - Coalition Clean Baltic (CCB) welcomes the Commission’s recognition that declining fishing pressure has not consistently delivered higher biomass, that recruitment and biomass are deteriorating for a number of stocks, and that Baltic fisheries urgently need rebuilding trajectories. These findings must now shape the Council’s decision on the 2027 fishing opportunities and the Commission’s position during the Council negotiations. The poor status and decline of many Baltic Sea fish populations have been documented over several decades and show that the ecosystem is in severe distress. Cumulative human pressures have contributed to major ecosystem shifts, and at the same time climate change is making the shallow, semi-enclosed Baltic Sea warmer and less saline. These combined pressures affect not only fish biomass but also recruitment, population age and size structures, species interactions and the functioning of the wider food web. The Baltic crisis reflects the persistent failure to fully implement the CFP and the Baltic MAP, including their precautionary safeguards and the legal obligation to apply ecosystem-based fisheries management. Fishing opportunities for 2027 must therefore mark the first concrete step towards ambitious, timebound rebuilding trajectories that reduce fishing pressure and enable depleted populations to recover to healthy levels. These trajectories must include implementation of an ecosystem based approach by accounting for species interactions, food-web needs, habitat conditions, environmental and climatic change and scientific uncertainty, while reinforcing, not replacing the CFP’s objectives and the Baltic MAP’s existing safeguards in Art. 4.6. The Commission’s 2027 proposal is now before the Council. The October Council must turn the commitment to rebuild Baltic fish populations into measurable action by adopting fishing opportunities that deliver rapid and sustained recovery. Under no circumstances should the TACs adopted be higher than levels proposed by the European Commission. Fishing opportunities aligned with scientific evidence, legal safeguards and ecosystem needs are the basis for both a recovering Baltic Sea and viable fisheries in the long term. Read the full CCB's submission and recommendations here .
