A diverse, global group of 118 commercial and non-profit organisations have joined together to call for immediate action by tuna regional fisheries management organisations (RFMOs) to address critical tuna sustainability priorities.
The signatories want the development and implementation of comprehensive, precautionary harvest strategies; effective monitoring and management of fish aggregating devices (FADs); strengthened monitoring, control and surveillance tools, including increased observer coverage in purse seine and longline fisheries, and of at-sea transshipment activity, through human observers and/or electronic monitoring; and greater focus on the implementation of bycatch mitigation best practices broadly, with an emphasis on longline fisheries.
The letter and outreach effort are being coordinated by NGOs working on tuna sustainability globally through the NGO Tuna Forum. The letter has been shared with the Indian Ocean Tuna Commission and will also be sent to Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission (IATTC), International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT), and Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission (WCPFC).
The NGO Tuna Forum works to elevate inter-NGO engagement and increase market partner engagement where possible on issues and opportunities that fall within one or more of the following core focus areas: RFMO management & advocacy; market-based mechanisms for improving sustainability; and on-water research, activities and improvements.
