The 26th Meeting of the Advisory Committee to the Agreement for the Conservation of Small Cetaceans in the Baltic, North East Atlantic, Irish and North Seas (ASCOBANS) is due to take place virtually from 8 to 12 November 2021, as decided by the 9th Meeting of the Parties last year. The scientific session of the meeting will see participants review and discuss four pressures to small cetaceans listed in the Annex to Resolution 8.1 (Rev.MOP9), namely underwater noise, ocean energy, unexploded ordnance, and marine spatial planning. 

The ASCOBANS Jastarnia Group has successfully concluded its 17th annual meeting, which took place virtually from 25 to 27 May 2021. As the Steering Group for the ASCOBANS Recovery Plan for Baltic Harbour Porpoises (Jastarnia Plan) and the ASCOBANS Conservation Plan for the Harbour Porpoise Population in the Western Baltic, the Belt Sea and the Kattegat (WBBK Plan), the Jastarnia Group reviewed progress on the implementation of the two Plans by discussing key activities of each Range State present and by presenting updates from across the Baltic and Belt Seas.

The Harbour Porpoise (Phocoena phocoena) is the only native cetacean species to the Baltic Sea.  It is also one of the smallest marine mammals globally.  Today, less than 500 individuals remain in the Baltic Sea area, threatened by bycatch, pollution, underwater noise, habitat degradation and diminishing food sources. 

The kick-off meeting of the CetAMBICion project - Coordinated Cetacean Assessment, Monitoring and Management strategy in the Bay of Biscay and Iberian Coast sub-region - took place today over Zoom.  Nearly 60 stakeholders joined the meeting over Zoom to hear introductions to the project and the EU Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD) projects programme, briefings on the six work packages of the project, and plans for the first deliverables.