WWF is urging countries meeting in Brazil this week to agree on a temporary fishing ban for the beleaguered Atlantic bluefin tuna, as an essential measure to avoid imminent stock collapse.
The latest science shows that Atlantic bluefin tuna’s spawning population has declined to below 15 per cent of pre-fishing levels – and could even have dropped to under 10 per cent. WWF has warned that bluefin tuna could effectively disappear by 2012 under the current fishing regime.
Last year, WWF says that the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) failed to take action to save Atlantic bluefin tuna, resulting in a proposal to list the species on Appendix 1 of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) when contracting parties meet in March 2010.
Now the organisation says that ICCAT has another opportunity to show the world it is capable of responsible fisheries management. At its annual meeting in Recife, Brazil, the 48 contracting parties are under pressure to decide on measures that will ensure the long-term survival of a species that has long been the victim of illegal and over-fishing and is in danger of being fished to extinction.
ICCAT’s own analysis shows that a moratorium will give bluefin tuna the best chance of recovery in the Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean. The organisation’s scientific committee analysed fish stocks at a special meeting in October, demonstrating with their data that Atlantic bluefin tuna fulfils the criteria to be listed on CITES Appendix I.
ICCAT’s scientific analysis also shows that a suspension of fishing is the only measure with a chance of ensuring Atlantic bluefin tuna stocks no longer meet the criteria for CITES Appendix I by 2019.
