CCB letter to Commisioner Vella about eel

CCB • May 16, 2016

In April 2016 CCB sent a letter to the Commission pointing to the illegal catches of eel but also questioning the legal fishery on an endangered species and if the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) goal of fishing at MSY applies to eel. CCB has gotten a response from the Commission explaining the views of the Commission and an indication to investigate further the data of illegal catches that CCB sent in. The Commissions reply also hints that it considers existing EU regulations stricter and include stronger measures than any kind of international agreement can deliver, for example the Convention of Migratory Species (CMS or “Bonn convention”) that recently added eel to its annex II. CCB hopes that the Commission as well as the Member States will take on the full responsibility to make sure illegal fishing is controlled better and that all fishing is stopped during the migration season for eel. It remains to be seen if the CFP goal of fishing at MSY indeed applies to eel.

Read CCBs letter here.

Read the Commissions response here.

CCBs information about eel.

 

EU fisheries at a crossroads: NGOs warn against reform as Baltic collapse exposes failure to enforce existing rules

By CCB • April 30, 2026
Failure to implement EU fisheries law, not gaps in the policy itself, has pushed the Baltic Sea to the brink. Coalition Clean Baltic (CCB) urges immediate action to rebuild Baltic fish populations and restore ecosystems.

Tampering with EU Fisheries Policy would ‘open Pandora’s Box’, NGOs warn

By CCB • March 30, 2026
Brussels, 30 March 2026 - Today, Fisheries Ministers from EU Member States meet with the European Commission for the AGRIFISH Council. On this occasion, Oceana, BLOOM, ClientEarth, Coalition Clean Baltic (CCB), Environmental Justice Foundation (EJF), Seas At Risk and WWF EU, handed a symbolic ''Pandora’s Box'' to the EU Commissioner Costas Kadis, sending a clear message as the European Commission prepares its 2026 evaluation of the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP). The box represents the risks of revising EU’s main fishery policy framework: once opened, competing demands from Member States, industry, small-scale fishers, and coastal communities could quickly spiral into division, regulatory delays and uncertainties. This would put at risk the hard-won progress made in restoring Europe’s fish populations and improving the profitability of the fishing sector. NGOs urge decision makers to build on the progress made to date and to prioritise the full and timely implementation of the existing rules. Reopening the CFP and its related provisions would undermine ocean health and the long-term future of Europe’s fishing communities. '' Europe's fisheries policy is facing a credibility test. The law is already there. The tools to rebuild our seas already exist. What's missing is the political will to deliver. Overfishing should have ended by 2020 at the latest. Reopening the CFP would signal that missed deadlines carry no consequences, erode trust, revert the progress made, and put the future of our fisheries and coastal communities at stake ’’, said the NGO coalition. *** Oceana: Vera Coelho, Executive Director and Vice President in Europe BLOOM: Claire Nouvian, Founder and General Director ClientEarth: John Condon, Lead of Marine Ecosystems Coalition Clean Baltic (CCB): Ida Carlén, Co-Chair Environmental Justice Foundation: Steve Trent, CEO/Founder Seas At Risk: Dr Monica Verbeek, Executive Director WWF EU: Ester Asin, Director