Every four years, the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES) publishes an updated ecosystem overview for the Baltic Sea ecoregion. The latest version has now been published and researchers from the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences have contributed with significant knowledge.
Much of ICES' work is about setting quotas for fisheries and the latest ecosystem overview clearly shows that ecosystem-based management, which takes into account the interactions of species with the environment and each other, needs to be implemented to allow fish stocks to recover and to ensure the sustainable use of limited ecosystem resources.
Carolyn Faithfull, from the Department of Aquatic Resources at SLU, has been one of the key leaders in the work on the updated review.
– The ecosystem overview shows that fishing is the activity that impacts the ecosystem the most through the selective removal of species, while agriculture and forestry, together with wastewater discharges, affect the ecosystem through nutrient leakage, says Carolyn.
The Baltic Sea is an important resource for all nine countries surrounding it, but globally it is also one of the most affected marine ecosystems due to its large drainage basin and relatively limited water exchange with the North Sea. Although successful reductions in nutrient leakage to the Baltic Sea have been achieved, nutrient concentrations remain high due to large internal nutrient loading. The oxygen-deprived seabed areas, unsuitable for life forms other than bacteria, continue to expand. The decline in large predatory fish has also led to an imbalance in the food chain, with smaller forage fish species increasing. Additionally, ice habitats are shrinking, and heatwaves are becoming more frequent.
– Despite the many challenges we face, the Baltic Sea remains an invaluable natural resource that regulates our climate, provides us with oxygen, fish, recreational activities, and contributes to national identity. At SLU, we contribute to the sustainable management of the Baltic Sea by studying the ecosystem and its interaction with society. The future of the Baltic Sea requires international cooperation, long-term solutions, and an ecosystem-based management approach, says Carolyn.
Click the infographic to view full screen.
