Greenpeace International has condemned the Indian Ocean Tuna Commission (IOTC) members’ lack of attempt to try to stop the decline of vulnerable regional tuna species and adoption of insufficient measures to protect sharks.
What IOTC members meeting in Mauritius did agree on is the introduction of precautionary fishing limits; although the management scheme required to ensure this is carried, they will not actually be negotiated until 2014.
Measures were agreed on to protect endangered whale sharks, cetaceans and oceanic white tip sharks from being intentionally caught in purse seine and longline fisheries. However, other destructive shark fishing practices were ignored.
“Although a positive commitment was made driven by the Maldives to prevent stock depletion in the future, the current situation leaves little room for optimism, Greenpeace International oceans campaigner Sari Tolvanen said. The Indian Ocean’s tuna stocks hang in the balance as fishing intensifies and the region currently lacks the data needed to properly manage its fishing capacity and effort.”
Tolvanen noted that IOTC members failed to adopt a proposal to cut catches of albacore tuna by 30 per cent and thereby protect the most vulnerable tuna species in the region, and to eliminate shark finning or limit purse seining with destructive fish aggregation devices (FADs).
Greenpeace International warned that the sustainability of tuna fisheries and the livelihoods and food security of fishing communities are at stake, and depend on the cooperation of various coastal states to agree on conservation measures and the creation of more exemptions for smaller scale fleets.
In fact, due to steadily growing numbers of subsidized foreign fishing vessels — from countries such as India, Sri Lanka, Indonesia and Oman — local tuna boat operators fishing albacore in the region are under threat of being pushed out of operation altogether.
Besides, the ONG stressed that a recent report by the Pacific Islands Forum Fisheries Agency revealed that some foreign fishing fleets were receiving subsidies in the form of fuel offsets, new vessel construction, preferential tax treatment and payment for access fees.
These subsidies fuel the plunder of South Pacific albacore and are now leading to localized depletions and declines in catch rates across the fishery, jeopardizing the livelihoods of locally owned small-scale tuna boat operators in Pacific Island countries, said Greenpeace Australia Pacific oceans campaigner Duncan Williams.
Greenpeace is thus urging the Pacific nations attending the 85th Annual Forum Fisheries Committee meeting in Honiara, Solomon Islands this week to push to support local, sustainable small-scale fisheries instead of foreign owned, large-scale fishing vessels and fleets.
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