The Swedish Government Wants to Increase Seal and Cormorant Hunting - to Save the Fish
A couple of weeks ago, the Swedish Agency for Marine and Water Management (HaV) concluded in an investigation that two of the three seal species that inhabits Swedish waters are declining. The grey seal is increasing overall, but it has moved over to the Finnish side, the harbor seals are threatened by a total population crash, while the ringed seals have a stable population so far. Yet the government now wants to increase seal hunting to save the fish.
– The sharp increase in seal and cormorant populations is causing great damage to our marine environment and especially to our fish stocks. The government is now taking long-awaited measures to reverse this trend by increasing the hunting of seals and cormorants. This will give fish stocks a chance to recover,’ said Romina Pourmokhtari, Minister for Climate and Environment, in a press release.
Saving fish – by shooting seals
Cod is virtually gone from the Baltic Sea, herring is severely threatened and small-scale fishermen say that Baltic herring is disappearing. This creates huge problems in the sea when the very basis of life disappears.
The Swedish Environmental Protection Agency, the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU), the Swedish Research Council for Environment, Agricultural Sciences and Spatial Planning (Formas) and a number of county administrative boards have now been tasked with drawing up proposals on how to save the fish. And the solution, the Government believes, lies in shooting more seals and cormorants.
– These predators, seals and cormorants, consume large quantities of fish. This has significant consequences for both ecosystems and fish stocks. The assignments we have decided on today are therefore important measures to strengthen fish stocks, says Minister for Rural Affairs Peter Kullgren in a government press release.
Not all seals are doing well
But it may be that we shoot a species that no longer exists. Just a few weeks ago, HaV’s major report on how the seal is doing was published and it turns out that on the Swedish side of the Baltics, neither grey seals, harbor seals nor ringed seals are increasing.
Grey seals have increased in number throughout the Baltic Sea but have declined quite sharply on the Swedish side. HaV speculates that the fact that we are shooting the seals on the Swedish side has caused them to move over to the Finnish side. And although the population currently appears to be increasing, the increased hunting pressure, together with emissions of environmental toxins and climate change, may threaten the grey seal population in the future, HaV write.
While the ringed seal population is not under acute threat, they are still vulnerable as they are entirely dependent on sea ice to feed their pups. This sea ice has declined significantly in recent years.
The harbor seal is endangered
For harbor seals, however, the situation looks serious. Seal numbers have declined in both Skagerrak and Kattegat, and the Kosterhavet National Park has seen a steady decline in the number of pups born over the past three years.
Helcom (the Helsinki Convention for the Protection of the Marine Environment of the Baltic Sea) has set a threshold for a healthy seal population. Anything below 10 000 individuals can lead to a population crash or, in worst case, extinction. Today, the number of harbor seals in Skagerrak is below that level, while in the Kattegat it is close to it.
The seal – an important predator in the Baltic Sea
These are facts that are difficult to get around, yet the Minister for Climate and Environment, Romina Pourmokhtari, says that ‘the sharply increased populations of seals and cormorants are causing great harm to our marine environment and especially to our fish stocks’. She also wants to increase hunting of a top predator, which is also described by HaV as an important part of ‘increasing the stability and productivity of marine environments by promoting resilient and biodiverse communities’.