20/09/2005 – Illegal fishing
disguised as accidental catch of fish banned
from commercial use is threatening to wipe
out remaining cod stocks in the Grand Banks
off Canada’s east coast, warns a new report
by WWF, the global conservation organization.
The Grand Banks fisheries, once home to one
of the world's most abundant populations of
cod, collapsed in the 11000s, leading to a
total fishing moratorium for this species
in 1994.
However, the report Bycatch on the High Seas:
A review of the effectiveness of the Northwest
Atlantic Fisheries Organization shows that
despite the ban over 13,000 tonnes of cod
and other fish, including American plaice
and redfish, are taken every year as bycatch
— the accidental capture of non-targeted fish.
In 2003 alone, 5,400 tonnes of cod were caught
as bycatch in the southern Grand Banks — about
90 per cent of the total population in that
area and a 30-fold increase in bycatch since
the fishery was closed.
Fishermen usually throw overboard unwanted
marine species but are allowed to keep a small
percentage of commercially valuable fish caught
accidentally, which can be sold for profit.
According to WWF, this has led to massive
abuse as many vessels are purposefully operating
in areas where fishing of species such as
cod is banned but their accidental catch very
likely to happen. The report shows that in
some cases bycatch can make up as much as
80 per cent of the landed catch, leading to
huge profit increases.
"When there is a fishing moratorium
most people believe that endangered fish stocks
are protected, but this is not the case,"
said Dr. Robert Rangeley, Director of WWF-Canada's
Atlantic Marine Programme.
"The current level of cod bycatch clearly
means that this species has little chance
of recovery in the Grand Banks."
The WWF report criticizes the Northwest Atlantic
Fisheries Organization (NAFO) for mismanaging
the fisheries under its control. It says that
in eleven of these fisheries, where fishing
is totally or partially banned because of
depletion of their fish stocks, there are
little signs of recovery, mainly because of
the bycatch issue.
WWF is calling on the Canadian government
and other NAFO nations to immediately take
measures that will reduce the bycatch of cod
on the southern Grand Banks by 80 per cent,
protect sensitive habitats, such as corals,
from fishing, and address overcapacity (too
many boats chasing too few fish), which is
a root cause for overfishing and bycatch.
Canada has an added responsibility to ensure
protection of species such as cod, as much
of the Grand Banks waters lie solely within
its jurisdiction.
"We need to act swiftly in order to
restore the awesome productivity of the Grand
Banks region," said Dr Simon Cripps,
Director of WWF’s Global Marine Programme.
"If we continue to allow wasteful fisheries
practices, fish stocks will never recover
and coastal communities will continue to suffer.
The Canadian government and NAFO fishing nations
must act now in order to save our fisheries."
NOTES:
• The Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organization
(NAFO) includes 13 countries: Canada, Bulgaria,
Cuba, Denmark, France, Iceland, Japan, South
Korea, Norway, Russia, the US, and the EU
representing Estonia, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania,
Poland, Portugal, Romania, and Spain. Their
fleets are fishing on the high seas and straddling
Canada’s 200-mile limit in the region of the
Grand Banks off Canada’s east coast. NAFO
is holding its annual meeting in Tallinn,
Estonia from the 19–23 September 2005.
