ICCAT imposes biggest sanctions ever for overfishing

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The International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) has imposed sanctions of about USD$100 million on Chinese Taipei for overfishing bigeye tuna according to a press note from the Department of Fisheries and Oceans of Canada

The statement says that the 2006 quota of bigeye tuna for Chinese Taipei would have been 16,500 tonnes. “However, with the ICCAT sanctions, the quota has been reduced to 4,600 tonnes: 3,300 for the fleet directing for bigeye tuna and 1,300 as bycatch for the fleet directing for albacore tuna. The 11,900 tonnes cut from Taipei’s quota is worth about USD$100 million,” it states.

In addition to the quota cut, ICCAT has stipulated strict conditions to which Chinese Taipei vessels must adhere. For example, a maximum of 15 vessels will be permitted in the bigeye tuna fishery. This is a significant reduction from the approximately 100 vessels that participated in this fishery in 2005. If the vessels of the fishing entity fail to adhere to the quota cuts and other conditions, ICCAT will decide on further sanctions against Chinese Taipei next year.

ICCAT leads other regional fisheries management organizations in using trade sanctions to combat the problem of illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing activity. The organization also maintains a list of vessels suspected of engaging in these activities in the ICCAT Convention Area.

The sanctions invoked against Chinese Taipei were a key outcome of ICCAT’s annual meeting held last week in Seville, Spain. The Commission also passed important proposals relating to an ICCAT observer program for transshipments. This program will make it harder for vessels to launder catches at sea from one ocean to the other. It will also serve to strengthen the Commission’s monitoring and control measures, and its ability to identify IUU activities.

ICCAT

ICCAT is the regional fisheries management organization responsible for the management of tuna, swordfish and other related large pelagics in the Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea. There are currently 41 Contracting Parties to ICCAT that range from North, South and Central America to Europe and Africa, as well as distant-water fishing nations in Asia. Canada has been a member of the organization since it was established in 1969.

Canada’s participation in the ICCAT annual meeting is another opportunity for Canada to push for stronger conservation and management measures of high seas fish stocks and improved adherence to existing measures. These objectives are consistent with Canada’s strategy to reform regional fisheries management organizations, combat overfishing and IUU fishing, and improve international fisheries governance.