A coalition of conservation organisations have accused the European Commission of sitting “on the wrong side of both history and science” for its attempts to overturn the UK’s recent decision to ban sandeel fishing within the English waters of the North Sea and all Scottish waters.

35 leading NGOs from both the UK and Europe, including Oceana UK, the RSPB, and the Wildlife Trusts, have expressed a shared outrage over the EU’s call for an arbitration tribunal as it looks to reverse sandeel fishery closures within UK waters. 

Calling on the Commission to reconsider its position, the coalition has cited both the current fragility of sandeel populations as well as the ecosystems within which they are a cornerstone species. 

Sandeels are a crucial species within the UK marine food chain, supporting vulnerable seabird species including puffins, kittiwakes, and razorbills. They are also a vital food source for seals, porpoises, and whales alongside fish like haddock and whiting. 

“Sandeels are familiar to us as flashes of silver in puffins’ bright beaks,” said Richard Benwell, CEO of Wildlife and Countryside Link, one of the 35 signatory NGOs opposing the EU’s call. “Protecting them is vital to restoring devastated seabird populations, along with much-loved mammals such as seals, porpoises, and whales.”

It was after decades of campaigning that in January 2024, the UK and Scottish governments finally announced an end to industrial sandeel fishing in English waters of the North Sea and all Scottish waters. The closure came into effect on March 26th this year and is regarded by conservationists as an essential step towards protecting globally important seabird populations.

However, talks between the EU Commission and the UK Government have been ongoing since the Commission launched its challenge to the closure earlier this year. In its challenge, the Commission questions the legitimacy of the closure under the UK-EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement. 

So far unable reach an agreement, the Commission is now calling for an arbitration tribunal to settle the dispute. It’s a decision that nature groups say not only challenges the UK’s ability to deliver ecosystem recovery but “contributes to the EU abysmally failing to meet its own environmental obligations.”

“The UK Government should hold firm in the face of this challenge by the EU and defend its much-needed decision to end industrial sandeel fishing,” said Benwell. “This is the type of leadership on the ground that will help in delivering an end to nature’s decline.”

The decision to end industrial sandeel fishing in the UK has come at a critical time for seabird populations. It’s reported that an alarming 62% of breeding seabird species have now declined across the UK. In Scotland, the UK’s seabird stronghold, those declines are as much as 70%.

In the last few decades alone, populations of sandeel-dependent species like puffins and kittiwakes have declined by 23% and 43%, respectively, while in September this year, five new seabird species were added to the UK Red List of highest conservation concern.

Pressure on sandeel populations from unsustainable fishing practices has been recognised as a key driver for these declines, and the reduced availability of sandeels has been repeatedly linked to the declining seabird populations that use the North Sea to forage.

“Closing UK sandeel fisheries was an historic and important decision to help marine wildlife recover,” said Joan Edwards, director of policy and public affairs at The Wildlife Trusts. “This positive step contributes towards achieving Good Environmental Status – the health measure for our seas – which the UK and many EU nations are failing to meet.”

In fact, the UK is currently failing on 11 out of 15 marine indicators for Good Environmental Status (GES), performing particularly badly on seabird populations. Because of this, the UK’s closure of industrial sandeel fisheries has been viewed by marine experts as an important step toward improving GES.

Hugo Tagholm, executive director of Oceana UK, said: “It’s a deep betrayal of our shared seas that the EU is continuing this challenge, which is clearly driven by aggressive tactics from industry giants who lobby for short-term profit with scant regard for marine life.

“Sandeels are an essential pillar of life in our ocean, supporting a wealth of wildlife that rely on these fish for food, and are already under strain from other threats, from the climate crisis to chronic pollution.”

The EU has argued that while sandeel are an important species to marine ecology, they are also a cornerstone catch for European fishing industries. The closure of UK sandeel fisheries has therefore landed a blow to the European fishing economy. 

During the 18-week sandeel fishing season prior to the UK ban in 2020, approximately 238,000 tonnes of the fish were landed by Danish and foreign fishing vessels in Danish ports for the country’s fishmeal industry. Over 170,000 tonnes of this was landed by Danish fishing vessels, 39,700 tonnes by Norwegian fishers, and 23,500 tonnes by Swedish vessels.

Sandeels are currently one of the only fish species that are processed into fishmeal and fish oil in Danish factories.

“The EU is on the wrong side of both science and history. Sandeels are not fished for human consumption but are reduced to fishmeal for aquaculture and livestock,” said Ariel Brunner, regional director of BirdLife Europe and Central Asia. “To continue fishing sandeels threatens the collapse of other fish stocks and directly endangers the future of small-scale fishers for the benefit of a very specific industry.

“By prioritising the demands of large-scale fishing interests, the EU risks the health of our oceans and the livelihoods of fishers and coastal communities.”

Nature experts instead urge that the EU follows the UK’s suit in taking measures to protect the marine environment to meet its own GES commitments. Very few EU nations are currently meeting GES, with approximately 33% of seabird populations in Europe in decline and 22% regarded as ‘threatened’.

Yet despite the importance of sandeels to European seabirds, no such fishing closures are planned.

“We are disappointed that the EU continues to challenge this decision, which goes against their rhetoric and existing commitments on nature recovery,” said The Wildlife Trust’s Edwards. “Fishers rely on healthy marine ecosystems and this decision is throwing a much-needed lifeline to fish, marine mammals, and seabirds. We strongly support the UK government on this and urge the EU to reevaluate its position.”