BRUSSELS, Belgium — Cod stocks have sunk to historic lows and are near commercial extinction in many European Union waters despite deep cuts in the fishing fleet and stringent catch quotas, a study released Monday showed.

Cod stocks in three key areas — the North Sea, the Irish Sea, and west of Scotland — "are at such low levels that we have to resort to recommending zero catches as a final line in the sand," said the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES).

Any proposal to close down those traditional waters to fishing for the tasty whitefish is bound to run into stiff resistance from the fishing industry.

Fishing lobbies were able to stave off a moratorium on cod fishing in several areas last year but will face increasing pressure when E.U. fisheries ministers meet in December to set catch policy for next year.

"The message is clearly bleak on some stocks of key interest," said British Fisheries Ministers Ben Bradshaw. "It must be taken seriously if fishing these stocks in Britain is to have a sustainable and profitable future."

Environmental agencies want the E.U. ministers to take tougher action this time.

"Only a drastic reduction in fishing effort in the short term, coupled with financial support for the fishermen will now guarantee the survival of the industry for years to come," said Charlotte Mogenson, the fisheries policy officer of the World Wildlife Fund.

The Copenhagen-based international council, ICES, said North Sea and Skagerrak cod stocks reached 52,000 metric tons this year, less than one-third of their minimum recommended size.

The most dramatic drop was in the Atlantic waters west of Scotland. The estimated cod stock there stood at 2,500 tons only, while ICES sees 22,000 tons as a minimum recommended stock size. Whiting in the Irish Sea stood at 1,700 tons, while ICES set its mark at 7,000. There, too, ICES calls for a halt in fishing.

"It vindicates the Commission's approach in proposing tough measures to reverse stock depletion. We will now study this advice with great care," said E.U. Fisheries Commissioner Franz Fischler, who has proposed tougher measures for years only to see E.U. governments step in to dilute them.

Since E.U. fishers share waters with Norwegians, the ICES findings also affect the Scandinavian country.

Jan Ivar Maraak of the Norwegian Fishing Vessel Owner's Association said a total stop of all fishing where cod could be caught as a byproduct would probably be unthinkable for Norway.

"It the worst case, stopping all fishing with cod as a byproduct would be dramatic," he said.

Last year, the European Union agreed on an unprecedented fishing reform that cut further jobs from the 200,000-strong E.U. industry. The deal keeps boats forcibly in ports for longer periods of time. It further cut quotas and set subsidies for new boats to be cut after 2004.

The E.U. has said it wants to avoid what happened in the waters of Canada's east coast during the 1990s. There cod nearly disappeared in the once-fertile fishing grounds, putting tens of thousands of fishers out of work. Cod has yet to return in sufficient numbers to sustain fishing again.

Founded in 1902, ICES coordinates and promotes marine research in the North Atlantic, the North Sea, and the Baltic Sea. Its members include Belgium, Britain, Canada, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, Latvia, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Spain, Sweden, and the United States.