Bycatch, Underwater Noise, and Offshore Wind Impacts Dominate JG22 Agenda
The 22nd Meeting of the Jastarnia Group (JG22) was held online from 14–16 April 2026, bringing together representatives of Baltic Sea Range States, partner organizations and experts. Across a series of thematic sessions, participants exchanged updates on research projects, shared recent findings from relevant studies, and discussed policy amendments. The meeting aimed to review progress on implementing the Jastarnia Plan and the Belt Sea Plan as well as identify actions to strengthen protection efforts for the harbour porpoise in the Baltic Sea. Jastarnia Group is the Steering Group for the ASCOBANS Recovery Plan for Baltic Harbour Porpoises (Jastarnia Plan) and the Conservation Plan for the Harbour Porpoise Population in the Western Baltic, the Belt Sea and the Kattegat.
The meeting started with a joint session with the ASCOBANS North Sea Group, which provided the opportunity to address issues relevant to the areas of both Steering Groups. Topics included key outcomes of the recently concluded 15th Meeting of the Conference of the Parties to CMS, ongoing research projects in both seas, for example investigating anisakid nematode infections, and threats affecting the wider harbour porpoise population, such as bycatch and underwater noise.
Updates were also presented on the CIBBRiNA LIFE project, including newly accessible outputs such as a Review of bycatch mitigation measures and a guide for designing a bycatch monitoring programme. Further, monitoring outcomes from Swedish gillnet fishery pointed to encouraging developments, with a decline in reported bycatch numbers. At the same time, temporal patterns could be identified which not only offer further mitigation opportunities but also add to the knowledge of population distribution.
Additionally, research assessing pinger functionality in Swedish waters demonstrated positive effects, though variations were observed depending on fishing gear type. New findings on species distribution in the North and Belt Seas were also shared, indicating a declining density of harbour porpoises in the Great Belt. These results underline the importance of sustained monitoring and targeted conservation responses.
Updates covered outreach and stakeholder engagement activities, monitoring of underwater noise and bycatch, and information on stranded animals. Notable achievements included the designation of new marine protected areas in Sweden and Germany, alongside the installation of stone reefs in Denmark. At the same time, challenges were acknowledged, such as limited interest among fishers in adopting alternative fishing gear and increased stranding events reported from Poland. In light of this, participants endorsed the Guidelines for Genetic Sampling of Stranded Harbour Porpoises, with the objective of increasing the number of samples and improving knowledge of the porpoise population and its distribution.
Further discussions addressed the potential impacts of offshore wind energy development and carbon capture storage (CCS) on harbour porpoises in the Baltic. These topics highlighted the growing need for international coordination, especially when wind parks are to be erected close to shared border areas. Updates were provided on ongoing research projects such as SAMBAH II and CUMBIAH, which focus on mapping harbour porpoise population size and data from acoustic monitoring and stranding networks.
Other new research presented at the meeting shed light on the historical abundance of harbour porpoises in the Baltic Sea, suggesting that populations were significantly larger in the past and that habitats in the Bothnian Sea were frequently used. These findings point to substantial anthropogenic impacts on population development over the last 200 years. Complementary genetic studies and stomach content analyses further increased the understanding of population structure, diet, and prey preferences, providing valuable insights for more targeted conservation measures. Lastly, while not a small cetacean, the stranding of a humpback whale close to the German Baltic Sea coast presented itself as a particularly discussed issue throughout the meeting.
To conclude JG22, participants reviewed the Parties’ progress in implementing the actions is the two action plans. Action Points agreed upon at JG21 were also reviewed and updated, including the addition of new action points such as addressing underwater noise generated by surveys related to potential CCS sites.
All relevant outcome documents, including the updated Action Points, the Jastarnia Plan Progress Report 2026 and the Belt Sea Progress Report 2026, and the meeting report, will be available on the meeting page in due course.
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