EU Urged To Take The Lead On Strong ICCAT Bluefin Measuresff
28 October 2010
European Union Source: Oceana In light of this week’s EU Council of Fisheries Ministers meeting, the environmental group Oceana strongly urges increased protection for endangered bluefin tuna, swordfish and sharks, and reminds the EU of its commitment to restore fish stocks to the Maximum Sustainable Yield (MSY). The Ministers will be discussing the EU position for the upcoming meeting of the Contracting Parties to the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas ICCAT.
“ICCAT provides the EU with a unique opportunity to show there’s a real political will to restore depleted fish stocks,†states Xavier Pastor, Executive Director of Oceana in Europe.“Given the critical status of bluefin tuna, and the lack of management measures for Mediterranean swordfish and sharks, thesituation can no longer be ignored by the EU, which has been the greatest beneficiary of their exploitation and is partly responsible for the current conditions.â€
Bluefin tuna are among those species exploited by EU fleet whose fate lies in the hands of ICCAT.
“While a lot of focus should be on the urgent need to recover endangered bluefin tuna,we cannot ignore the state of other overexploited ICCAT species. Without urgent action, Mediterranean swordfish will be well on its way to facing the same fateâ€, added Xavier Pastor.
Oceana urges the EU to propose and advocate for the following measures for bluefin tuna:
Bluefin tuna stocks have been overexploited by decades of mismanagement and illegal fishing. Current industrial fleet overcapacity undermines the 2010 TAC (Total Allowable Catches). Additionally, the 2010 TAC doesn’t guarantee the recovery of the species by MSY within a reasonable time period.
Oceana urges the EU to promote:
· a total closure of industrial fishing activity; · marine reserves in Mediterranean bluefin tuna spawning areas; and · the establishment of a TAC that fully ensures recovery of the species.
The International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) is an inter-governmental fishery organization responsible for the conservation of tunas and tuna-like species in the Atlantic Ocean and its adjacent seas. The ICCAT annual meeting consists of delegates from more than 48 countries fishing in the Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea, discussing the future of large pelagic species such as endangered bluefin tuna, sharks and swordfish. The upcoming meeting of ICCAT will be held in Paris from November.
