BRAZIL/FILE: Atlantic tuna commission meets to establish catch quotas for the endangered species
Record ID:
723372
BRAZIL/FILE: Atlantic tuna commission meets to establish catch quotas for the endangered species
- Title: BRAZIL/FILE: Atlantic tuna commission meets to establish catch quotas for the endangered species
- Date: 8th November 2009
- Summary: RECIFE, BRAZIL (NOVEMBER 07, 2009) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF VIEWS OF BEACH NEAR HOTEL WHERE A CONFERENCE OF THE INTERNATIONAL COMMISSION FOR THE CONSERVATION OF ATLANTIC TUNAS (ICCAT) IS BEING HELD CLOSE OF HOTEL SIGN GENERAL VIEW OF HOTEL ENTRANCE CLOSE OF ICCAT BANNER INSIDE HOTEL CONFERENCE PARTICIPANTS PICKING UP HEADSETS IN ROOM ENTRANCE PARTICIPANTS IN CONFERENCE ROOM GENERAL VIEW OF MEETING ROOM CONFERENCE CHAIRMAN SPEAKING, PRESENTING CONFERENCE AGENDA CLOSE OF PARTICIPANT U.S. DELEGATION IN CONFERENCE (SOUNDBITE) (English) U.S. REPRESENTATIVE, REBECCA LENT, SAYING: "We established a rebuilding plan for swordfish and this year we have a rebuilt stock, so bluefin tuna is not doing as well as north Atlantic swordfish, but we have a lesson learned from the north Atlantic swordfish. If we can agree to quotas, stick to our rebuilding plan and have good compliance then we can rebuild these stocks, and that's exactly what we want to do here this week." VIEW OF JAPANESE DELEGATION (SOUNDBITE) (English) GREENPEACE REPRESENTATIVE, WILLIE MACKENZIE, SAYING "I think it is fair to say that Greenpeace is a bit cynical about what will happen at the ICCAT meeting because we've been here before and they haven't delivered what they needed to do. The main reason that we are here is because this is really the last chance for ICCAT to do something useful on bluefin tuna. Now we've seen overwhelming evidence, overwhelming public outcry about bluefin tuna, and just a couple of weeks ago ICCAT's own scientists agreed that it would be justifiable to have a trade ban on the species." DELEGATES CHATTING DURING COFFEE BREAK VARIOUS OF PARTICIPANTS DURING COFFEE BREAK VARIOUS OF BEACH
- Embargoed: 23rd November 2009 12:00
- Keywords:
- Topics: International Relations,Environment / Natural World
- Reuters ID: LVAF3TX4C9YL4MERLNBNTIDY886X
- Story Text: Delegates from the 48 countries that make up the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) started discussing on Saturday (November 7) actions to prevent overfishing of the endangered bluefin tuna.
The week-long conference opens officially on November 9 in the coastal Brazilian city of Recife amid skepticism from environmental groups that it will forge an agreement to significantly cut the catch of bluefin in the Mediterranean and east Atlantic.
The warm-blooded tuna is prized by sushi lovers and commands huge prices in Asia, particularly in Japan where a single fish can fetch up to $100,000.
ICCAT scientists have warned that the bluefin tuna population is nearing the point at which it might never fully recover, but up to now the intergovernmental body has only made slight reductions to catches.
The delegations will also discuss fishing plans for other species such as swordfish, albacore and bigeye tuna, which have also reached critical levels.
The head of the U.S. delegation, Rebecca Lent, said it was crucial to reach an agreement to rebuild the stocks of the scarce species.
"We established a rebuilding plan for swordfish and this year we have a rebuilt stock, so bluefin tuna is not doing as well as north Atlantic swordfish, but we have a lesson learned from the north Atlantic swordfish. If we can agree to quotas, stick to our rebuilding plan and have good compliance then we can rebuild these stocks, and that's exactly what we want to do here this week," she said, before presenting her country's proposal in the meeting.
ICCAT researchers said last month that bluefin catches must drop to below 15,000 tones a year to ensure a recovery that would one day allow sustainable catches of around 50,000 tones a year.
Monaco has proposed protecting bluefin by using another mechanism -- listing the species under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES), and the EU this year came close to supporting that move.
But fishing nations Spain, Italy, France, Cyprus, Greece and Malta said in September they would not allow the 27-member EU to give its combined backing to Monaco.
Greenpeace representative, Willie Mackenzie, said he doubts the commission will make any considerable cuts to bluefin catches as they have previously refused to follow the recommendations of their own scientists.
"I think it is fair to say that Greenpeace is a bit cynical about what will happen at the ICCAT meeting because we've been here before and they haven't delivered what they needed to do. The main reason that we are here is because this is really the last chance for ICCAT to do something useful on bluefin tuna. Now we've seen overwhelming evidence, overwhelming public outcry about bluefin tuna, and just a couple of weeks ago ICCAT's own scientists agreed that it would be justifiable to have a trade ban on the species," he said.
The warm-blooded bluefin is known for its size and speed, reaching weights of over 600 kg (1,300 lb) -- heavier than an average horse -- and accelerating faster than a sports car to reach top speeds of around 70 km/h (40 mph).
The European Union said it would also bring up an ambitious plan to protect porbeagle and thresher sharks during the conference.
The porbeagle is a smaller relation of the man-eating great white that is prized by sport fishermen for its ability to jump out of the water as it fights the line.
The thresher shark grows to more than 500 kg and is known for its exceptionally long tail fin, which it uses to corral and stun schooling fishes.
Both shark species are fished for their fins, which are prized in Asia as an ingredient for soup, but they struggle to recover their numbers because like all sharks they breed so slowly. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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