© 2009 Brian J Skerry, National Geographic Stock, WWF

Gland, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – A ban on fishing the bluefin tuna in the Eastern Atlantic and the Mediterranean Sea, stocks of which are at their lowest historical levels, was not approved by the body in charge of managing the fish, announced WWF International, from Recife, Brazil Sunday 15 November.

The International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) agreed only to reduce the allowed quota from 19,500 tonnes to 13,500 tonnes, not enough to help stocks of the fish to recover, according to WWF, which is based in Gland, near Geneva. The ICCAT’s own scientists said at the ICCAT meeting in Recife that a maximum quota of 8,000 tonnes, if strictly enforced, would give the eastern bluefin tuna only a 50 percent chance of recovering.

“Today’s outcome is entirely unscientific – and entirely unacceptable,” said Sergi Tudela, head of fisheries at WWF Mediterranean. “This reduction of allowable catch is not based on any particular scientific advice to recover the stock with high probability – it is just an arbitrary political measure and only for one year. Now more than ever WWF sees a global trade ban as the only hope for Atlantic bluefin.”

WWF had hoped that ICCAT would listen to its own scientists and put a hold on fishing. It says that the only realistic hope for survival of the tuna now lies with member countries of Cites, the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species. Cites meets in March to consider a proposal by Monaco to put the bluefin tunafish on the list of endangered species.

ICCAT quotas are widely flouted by illegal fishing, which adds 30-50 percent more to the official catch. The bluefin tuna population is estimated to be at 10-15 percent of its historical highs, before industrial fishing began in the 1960s. ICCAT was founded to manage the fish.

Background:

• “Last chance for bluefin tuna: ICCAT meets in Recife, Brazil“, 9 November 2009, GenevaLunch
• “Give the bluefin tuna a chance“, 8 November 2009, GenevaLunch

Links to other sites: Romandie News, WWF

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