Moratorium On Bluefin Catches “Not Excluded” By EU Fisheries Presidentff

The environmental organization WWF says it welcomes the strong potential of the European Commission’s negotiating mandate for next month’s meeting of the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) in Marrakech Morocco, announced last night following EU Fisheries Council discussions in Luxembourg.

The European Commission - which represents all EU member states at ICCAT, the body tasked with sustainably managing the Mediterranean bluefin tuna fishery - has agreed a negotiating mandate that includes

“(...) taking into account scientific advice, balancing capacity of fishing fleets and tuna farms with the availability of the resource, revising technical measures such as shortening the fishing season (...), and pushing for a stronger control system for the whole fishery”.

Speaking on the possibility of ICCAT opting for a moratorium, current President of the EU Fisheries Council, France’s Fisheries Minister Michel Barnier, added at a press conference last night that “the mandate of the (European) Commission adopted today does not exclude this scenario”.

Meanwhile, European Fisheries Commissioner Joe Borg yesterday said “time is running out to save the bluefin tuna stock from collapse”, indicating that the EU will now be “able to champion bold and decisive measures” at ICCAT in November.

Source: Full text from WWF press release