Finland, Sweden agree on Tornionjoki fishing regulations

The Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry and the Swedish Agency for Marine and Water Management have agreed on derogations from the Fishing Rule concerning the River Tornionjoki. The new fishing regulations will come into effect starting on 1 June 2019.

The fishing regulations will be negotiated on an annual basis to ensure that they correspond to the current status of fish stocks,said a government press release.

The regulations also aim to ensure sustainable fishing in the area governed by the agreement. The regulations will be brought into the national legislation through a Government decree. A written record will also be published in line with the decree.

The fishing regulations applied to the 2019 fishing season are the same as those applied in 2017 and 2018. The only new regulation concerns the prohibition on fishing for grayling in April-May, which will be applied in spring 2020. The purpose of the new regulation is to strengthen the grayling stock by protecting graylings from being caught during the spawning season.

In line with the salmon and sea trout strategy, the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry proposed to Sweden the implementation of an obligation to provide information concerning salmon catches and, as a related measure, a seasonal catch quota of five salmon per fisher.

Verifying compliance with the seasonal quota should be carried out through salmon tagging, for example. A sanction should also be laid down for breaches of the obligation to provide information. These measures will require additional preparations and continued discussions both within and between the two countries. The discussions with Sweden are set to continue in the spring.