Australian Federal Environment Minister Peter Garrett has decided to change the law so Australia can avoid its international obligations and allow threatened sharks to be caught in Australian waters, WWF-Australia and TRAFFIC have warned.
Minister Garrett has decided not to list the porbeagle, longfin mako and shortfin mako sharks under Australia’s Environmental Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act (EPBC), despite current legislation requiring this when a species is listed under the Convention for Conservation of Migratory Species (CMS).
All three sharks were recently added to the international convention following warnings from scientists that populations of these species could collapse from overfishing.
Following lobbying from recreational fishing and charter boat operators, the Government intends to change its commitment by amending the EPBC legislation when Parliament sits next week, potentially removing protection for other migratory species.
Recent reports indicate that mako catch rates in the Western Central Pacific have been steadily declining.
In Australian waters, the Australian Fisheries Management Authority has also identified one mako species as potentially at high risk from fishing.
The changes to the EPBC Act are being made despite Federal Government policy stating that Australia manages its fisheries using the precautionary principle.
“If this government is serious about living up to its own policy and the obligations it has signed on for, it should stop the hunting of these listed species until a complete review of their status in Australian waters has been carried out,” said Glenn Sant, Global Marine Programme Leader of TRAFFIC (IUCN and WWF’s wildlife trade network) and a Vice-Chair of the IUCN Shark Specialist Group.
