1. The Society of Friends of River Łeba
Public Benefit Organization
ul. Aleja Wolności 22, 84-300 Lębork
www.rzekaleba.pl
e-mail: towarzystwo@dolinaleby.eu
KRS 0000107263 Bank PKO BP Rach. Nr 19-1020-4649-0000-7802-0055-3966 REGON 770955932
Lębork, 4 December 2013
Minister of Agriculture
and Rural Development
Mr. Stanisław Kalemba
We, the undersigned representatives of non-governmental organizations, acting for the benefit of
the environment, including Polish rivers inhabited by salmonid species, wish to make a protest at the
policy of the Polish government with respect to the management of migratory salmonid species in
Poland, and express our concern about the sanitary condition of Polish rivers providing habitat to
salmon and seatrout.
Since 2007 the UDN epidemic (Ulcerative Dermal Necrosis) has been spreading across river basins in
Poland decimating salmon and seatrout spawners. The rivers inhabited by infected fish are Rega,
Parsęta, Wieprza with its tributary Grabowa, Słupia, Łupawa, Reda and Łeba. The scale of the issue is
so large that on some of the rivers the disease has affected 100% of the fish population.
It has been reported that ascending fish are frequently too weak to make it to the spawning grounds
and they perish. The entities responsible for collection of roe and eggs from spawners for fish
breeding and stocking purposes are having great difficulty executing their task. The existing situation
has reached the size of pandemic.
With lack of response on the part of the State authorities the whole population of affected fish in
Poland has become endangered. Disease expansion onto other Polish rivers may jeopardize
populations of wild fish, its progression being so fast that it may soon embrace salmon and seatrout
rivers in other Baltic countries. In our opinion the deteriorating condition of Poland’s migratory
salmonid species is caused by faulty policy for the management of salmon and seatrout populations
in Poland. Moreover it is caused by a complete lack of clearly defined goals along with their
respective timelines and possible means of their execution. The Polish State has not developed
a coherent and comprehensive system for the protection and maintenance of seatrout and Atlantic
salmon populations in the Polish rivers. It can especially be observed now, with the UDN pandemic
spreading on more and more rivers. The disease has been progressing for years, but Poland has failed
to conduct a comprehensive monitoring of its scale, nor has it developed a schedule to fight the
disease in the years to come. This lack of response is a manifestation of negligence, lacking a sense of
responsibility for the sanitary condition of Polish inland waters.
Currently seatrout and salmon management in Poland is based on two premises: an obligation to
stock waters with fish, as performed by fishery usufructuaries, and stocking fish to marine waters, as
organized and coordinated by Task Force on Fish Stocking at the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural
Development. The stocking uses fish of various age classes at a scale unmatched in other countries
1

2. surrounding the Baltic Sea. That mass stocking actually serves as the only activity employed for the so
called protection of endangered fish species. In this great financial and organizational effort borne by
the State’s budget, and specifically focused on fish stocking, there is no room for the monitoring of
fish populations or the migrations thereof. Similarly, no funds are allocated to the enhancement of
the carrying capacity of the Polish rivers by e.g. removing migration obstacles, conducting
environmental risk assessments, providing particular protection of and support to wild populations of
migratory salmonids.
Such excessive fish stocking portrays out-of-date thinking and objectification of the environment. The
scale of fish stocking may serve as a stimulating factor in the outbreak of UDN disease in Poland.
Continuing the existing seatrout and salmon management solely based on mass fish stocking without
diligent assessment of the rivers’ carrying capacity, without instituting protective activities to support
natural spawning, may eventually lead to environmental disaster, as already signaled by the UDN
pandemic decimating Polish fish since 2007.
We, the undersigned representatives of non-governmental organizations, caring for Polish rivers,
closely watching the tragedy that affects seatrout and salmon each year, appeal for and demand that
preventing and counteracting activities against the issue described in this document be instituted,
aiming at the protection of the natural resources of diadramous migratory fish i.e. seatrout and
salmon.
On behalf of all Signatories
Marcin Kostuch
President of the Board
The Society of Friends of River Łeba
Our Earth
Foundation
Ecology Activists Club Gaja
Polish Ecological Club
Pro-environmental
Society "Słupia"
CZARNY PSTRĄG - The
Society of Friends of
Rivers Gwda and
Czernica
The Society of
Friends of River
Wełna
WWF Poland
The Society of Friends of
Rivers Ina and Gowienica
The Society of
Friends of River Rega
The Society of
Friends of River
Parsęta
2

3. The Society of Friends of
River Biała Przemsza
PASSARIA - The
Society of Friends of
River Pasłęka
“PSTRĄG” [Trout] Angling
Association of Gdańsk
“LIPIEŃ” [Grayling]
Club of Wejherowo
“The Angling World”
Publishing House
Aquarius Foundation
“Głowacz” [Muddler]
Trout Anglers’ Club
For information:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Baltic Marine Environment
Protection Commission
(Helsinki Commission)
Katajanokanlaituri 6 B
FI-00160 Helsinki
Finland
North Atlantic Salmon
Conservation Organization
11 Rutland Square
Edinburgh
EH1 2AS
United Kingdom
Dyrekcja Słowińskiego Parku
Narodowego
ul. Bohaterów Warszawy 1A
76-214 Smołdzino
Coalition Clean Baltic
Östra Ågatan 53, SE-753 22
Uppsala, Sweden
Główny Inspektorat Weterynarii
ul. Wspólna 30
00-930 Warszawa
Główny Inspektorat Ochrony
Środowiska
ul. Wawelska 52/54
00-922 RSZAWA
Green Institute
“The Art of Fly
Fishing” magazine
From Our End
Foundation
The Society of
Pomeranian Fishing
Guides
Angling Sports Club Friends
of River Chodelka
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
Miljödepartementet
Växel 08-405 10 00
Besöksadress Tegelbacken 2
Postadress 103 33 Stockholm
Lietuvos Respublikos APLINKOS
MINISTERIJA
Jakšto g. 4, LT-01105 Vilnius Litwa
Miljøministeriet
Børsgade 4
1215 København K
Instytut Rybactwa Śródlądowego
im. Stanisława Sakowicza
10-719 Olsztyn, ul. Oczapowskiego
10
Morski Instytut Rybacki –
Państwowy Instytut Badawczy
ul. Kołłątaja 1
81-332 Gdynia
PZW - POLSKI ZWIĄZEK
WĘDKARSKI
Ul. Twarda 42
00-831 Warszawa
Pomorski Zespół Parków
Krajobrazowych
Oddział: Park Krajobrazowy
"Dolina Słupi"
76-200 Słupsk, ul. Szarych
Szeregów 14
14. Stacja Morska Instytutu
Oceanografii Uniwersytetu
Gdańskiego
ul. Morska 2, 84-150 Hel
15. Zrzeszenie Rybaków Morskich Organizacja Producentów
84-120 Władysławowo, ul. Hallera
19
16. Generalna Dyrekcja Ochrony
Środowiska
ul. Wawelska 52/54
00-922 Warszawa
17. Danmarks Fiskeriforening
Nordensvej 3, Taulov
7000 Fredericia
18. Lietuvos medžiotojų ir žvejų
draugija
M. Sleževičiaus g. 15, 06326
Vilnius
3