18 May 2006 - At the
start of the commercial fishing season of the
bluefin tuna in the Mediterranean, traditional
tuna-trap fishermen in Southern Spain are facing
an unprecedented crisis. Catches are down by a
staggering 80 per cent on this time last year,
according to the Tuna Trap Producers Association
(OPP51). WWF is alarmed at this concrete demonstration
that the entire Mediterranean bluefin tuna fishery
is now bordering on collapse.
“Six hundred families dependent
on the tuna trap fishery are on the verge of ruin
in Southern Spain, like hundreds more across the
Mediterranean,” said Marta Crespo, Director General
of OPP51. “Humanity is losing a magnificent species
as well as over 3,000 years of history. What is
the EU waiting for?”
Tuna farming – the fattening
of wild bluefin tuna in cages – is driven mainly
by the Japanese market demand for sushi. This
has dramatically increased the amount of bluefin
tuna caught from an already overexploited stock
in the Mediterranean by a growing industrial fleet.
Increasing farming capacity in turn urges industrial
fleets to catch even more tuna – regardless of
the fact that population levels are very low.
Industrial fishermen will go to any lengths to
increase catch size, sometimes including illegal
activity. WWF fears that EU fleets will again
this year contravene international fishing regulations
in the Mediterranean.
The latest figures on tuna farming
capacity officially reported to ICCAT show an
increase of 8,500 tonnes with respect to two months
ago, resulting in a total authorised farming capacity
of 51,012 tonnes. It is shocking that ICCAT –
having previously established a total allowable
catch of the bluefin tuna stock of 32,000 tonnes
– is authorising such an inflated farming capacity,
which cannot be matched with catch size. This
is clearly encouraging 20,000 tonnes of bluefin
tuna to be illegally caught.
The EU plays a major role in
the International Commission for the Conservation
of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) – the most important
body for the regulation of the bluefin tuna fishery
in the Mediterranean – and must take the initiative
to drive forward effective recovery and management
measures. WWF’s top requests include extending
the seasonal closure for industrial tuna fishing
in the Mediterranean, and improving regulation.
It is now or never to save the bluefin tuna –
this year is the defining moment for the species’
survival.
“One of the most important fisheries
in the world is showing strong signs of collapse.
Given its responsibility in this fishery, the
EU has to take the lead at ICCAT in conservation
and management measures,” said Sergi Tudela, Fisheries
Officer at the WWF Mediterranean Programme Office.
“If an urgent recovery plan is not approved this
year – including tighter quotas – it is highly
likely that this fishery will disappear entirely
in the very near future”.
