Commercial fishing resumes after moratorium

“The Northern cod stock off Newfoundland and Labrador has officially recovered. After collapsing in the early 1990s, the stock has now returned to what Canada’s fisheries department classifies as a ‘healthy zone.’ The commercial fishery reopened in 2024 after a 32-year moratorium, and this year officials raised the allowable catch by 55 percent, from 38,000 to 59,000 tonnes,” reports The Doomslayer.

Canadian Affairs reports that “For the first time in over 30 years, Newfoundland and Labrador’s Northern cod stock has been deemed ‘healthy’ by Ottawa. In June, Fisheries and Oceans Canada upgraded the cod stock’s status from ‘critical’ to ‘healthy’ and simultaneously increased the commercial quota for cod by 55 percent.”

Canada’s government says:

Fishing is more than an industry in Newfoundland and Labrador—it is a way of life, deeply rooted in the history, culture, and identity of the province. For generations, Northern cod has been central to our story and the decision for Northern cod (2J3KL) will help support a year-round commercial Northern cod fishery….

The 2026 management decisions are:

• Northern cod: TAC increase from 38,000 tonnes to 59,000 tonnes.
• 2J3KLPs Capelin: The TAC is unchanged at 14,533 tonnes.
• Northern Gulf cod: No directed commercial fishery, and total removals remain capped at 500 tonnes a year to support rebuilding.

This level of harvest keeps Northern cod on a path to once again be a key driver of the fishing economy in Newfoundland and Labrador….This approach is grounded in peer-reviewed science and balances conservation with economic opportunity, keeping harvesting sustainable, and reflects a total harvest rate of 12 per cent.

As the overall quota is growing, every fleet will have significantly more fish available to catch in 2026.

Allocation shares for Northern cod are also being adjusted:

• Inshore fleet: 70 per cent of the TAC, 41,300 tonnes, up from 30,400 tonnes in 2025.
• Offshore and Midshore fleet: 20 per cent of the TAC, 11,806 tonnes up from 3,800 tonnes in 2025.
• Indigenous and Special Allocations: 10 per cent of the TAC, 5,895 tonnes, up from 3,801 tonnes in 2025.

These adjustments will ensure that the primary beneficiaries of this fishery continue to be inshore coastal communities of Newfoundland and Labrador. At the same time, the offshore sector also plays a critical role in  supporting coastal communities and helping to provide a consistent, year-round supply to global markets.

The health of Northern cod depends on a healthy ecosystem, and capelin is at the centre of it. As the main prey for Northern cod, 2J3KLPs capelin is one of the most important factors in the stock’s health. The capelin TAC remains at 14,533 tonnes for 2026. This precautionary approach helps maintain a stronger capelin population to support a stronger Northern Cod population.

Powerful warm-blooded bony fish have returned to the waters off Yorkshire, England.

A giant fish believed to be extinct was found in the Mekong River (the giant salmon carp, which can grow up to four feet in length).

Fish have returned to the Chicago River.

The critically-endangered flapper skate is recovering in the waters of Scotland.

In Germany, a sludge-filled river became a thriving ecosystem: “For more than a century, Germany’s Emscher river carried sewage and industrial sludge through the Ruhr, earning a reputation as an open sewer. Now, after a massive cleanup, the river is becoming a thriving ecosystem once again.” 

The North American right whale population is finally rebounding.

Blue whales have returned to parts of the Indian Ocean, thanks to the end of Communism, which wiped out countless whales. Communist Russia slaughtered much of the world’s whales, at least 180,000 of them. It killed far more indiscriminately than other whaling nations, and unlike them, it largely wasted the whales it killed, leaving their carcasses to rot. It has been called the most senseless environmental crime of the 20th Century.

“The Hawaiian stilt and the razorback sucker are no longer considered endangered in the United States following substantial recoveries.”