The Shark Alliance has applauded the decision made last week by Parties to the Convention on the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) to halt targeted fishing of vulnerable sharks in the Southern Ocean.
Concern over the practice of shark finning as well as increased fishing for exceptionally slow growing deepwater sharks in the region prompted France to propose action that led to the moratorium.
Shark fishing will be prohibited at least until the status of shark populations and the effects of fishing them are assessed. CCAMLR is also encouraging the release of sharks caught as bycatch.
“This responsible yet bold action by CCAMLR establishes the world's first limit on the amount of sharks that can be taken from international waters and is therefore a landmark agreement in global shark conservation,” said Sonja Fordham, Shark Alliance Policy Director. “We congratulate CCAMLR for affording sharks the precautionary protection they so urgently warrant yet rarely receive.”
Shark fishing in the rest of the world's international waters is limited only by bans on shark finning and international trade restrictions for three species. Substantial numbers of sharks are killed incidentally and increasingly targeted in international tuna and swordfish fisheries.
“We call on other regional fishery management organisations, particularly ICCAT, to follow CCAMLR's lead and limit shark fishing to scientifically derived, sustainable levels,” added Fordham. “Fishery managers must begin to err on the side of caution with respect to these exceptionally vulnerable marine species or we may well lose them completely.
