UN announces guidelines to protect fragile sea species
Date: 04-09-2008
Source: RTTNews
Email: editorial@rttnews.com
After two years of consultations with concerned countries, the United Nations announced new international guidelines to limit the impact of fishing on fragile sea species.
The guidelines details steps for improving information on the location and status of vulnerable marine ecosystems and deep sea fisheries. Few countries have so far developed policies and plans specifically related to managing deep sea fishing, even in their own waters, according to U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).
The FAO said managing deep sea fisheries in high seas areas outside of countries' exclusive economic zones has always been a difficult task since it requires multilateral solutions involving nations whose vessels are engaged in deep sea fisheries as well as other concerned countries.
Ichiro Nomura, Assistant Director General of FAO's Department of Fisheries and Aquaculture said that until recently, there was no international framework for tackling this issue.
Stating that the new guidelines represent one of the few practical instruments of this nature, he said it represents a breakthrough in that they address both environmental and fisheries management concerns in an integrated manner.
Stressing that all fishing activities in deep sea areas should be "rigorously managed," the guidelines recommend fishing nations assess the deep sea fishing being undertaken by their fleets to determine if any significant adverse impacts are involved, and if there are adverse impacts, the fishing activity should stop.
They also recommend measures that can be taken to identify and protect vulnerable ecosystems and provide guidance on the sustainable use of marine living resources in deep-sea areas.
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©2008 RTTNews
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Fisheries Resources
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