Oceana has welcomed steps taken for Eastern bluefin tuna management in 2013 at the annual ICCAT meeting, but has grave concerns about the lack of new measures for threatened sharks.
Contracting Parties to ICCAT adopted a catch limit of 13,400t for Eastern bluefin tuna, with an additional allowance of 100t for Algeria. Measures beyond 2013 will be determined on the basis of new science.
Seven proposals had been tabled that aimed to enhance the protection and management of threatened sharks in the ICCAT Convention area, but Oceana says that only one “vague” measure was adopted, related to compliance with existing measures. Oceana has expressed its extreme disappointment, particularly with the failure to adopt EU, science-based proposals to protect endangered porbeagles and to cap fishing pressure on shortfin makos, which are threatened, but commercially fished without any limits or management.
Dr Allison Perry, shark expert and Oceana Europe marine wildlife scientist, condemned the abandonment of sharks at this year’s meeting: “ICCAT has failed to assume their responsibility for managing shark fisheries in the Atlantic. Allowing stocks to become seriously depleted, and then prohibiting their capture does not qualify as responsible management. Sharks represent more than 15% of all reported catches in ICCAT, yet most sharks caught in ICCAT fisheries remain completely unmanaged.”
One of the measures that failed to be adopted was a United States proposal to strengthen the ICCAT prohibition on shark finning, by requiring all sharks to be landed with their fins still naturally attached. A similar proposal will be voted on by the European Parliament in Strasbourg this week.
