Bluefin/Cites Article - Not good

[KP161]

Thought I'd cheer everyone up with this news.

This is going to be very interesting if international trade gets shut down. Will they allow fish to be sold domestically? If not, I don't see how they could allow small fish to be killed effectively shutting down the rec fishery, charter fishery and commercial fishery. It does sound like the U.S. is trying to hold ICCAT's feet to the fire to straighten out out the illegal, unreported and overharvesting by the foreign fleets. Although at the expenditure of our own fishery.


10/15/2009 8:46:59 AM - The United States on Wednesday threw its support behind a proposal to list Atlantic bluefin tuna on Appendix I of CITES (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauns and Flora), effectively suspending international trade of the species.

Monaco officially submitted its proposal at the annual meeting of the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tuna (ICCAT) in Madrid, Spain, on Wednesday.

In a statement, Dr. Jane Lubchenco, administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, said that over the past 40 years ICCAT, which is responsible for managing the Atlantic bluefin tuna fishery, has overseen a 72 percent drop in the eastern Atlantic and Mediterranean bluefin tuna stock and a 82 percent drop in western Atlantic stock. She added that the eastern Atlantic and Mediterranean stock is being fished at two to three times the sustainable level, while the western Atlantic stock has stabilized.

Lubchenco called on ICCAT to adopt measures to end overfishing, including setting science-based quotas and closing the fishery during spawning periods, at its meeting in Recife, Brazil, from 6 to 16 November. She said the United States will consider amending or withdrawing support for the Monaco proposal should ICCAT do so.

“Improving international fishery management and ending illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing are high priorities for the U.S. government, Congress, commercial and recreational fishermen and conservationists,” said Lubchenco.

However, Joshua Reichert, managing director of the Pew Environment Group, criticized the United States for failing to co-sponsor the Monaco proposal, even though the country said it supports it. “This is a lost opportunity,” he said.

The 175 CITES members will vote on the Monaco proposal at their next meeting in Doha, Qatar, in mid-March; a two-thirds majority is required to approve the proposal.

In early September, the European Commission backed the Monaco proposal. Then, later in the month, France, Spain and Italy were among the handful of European Union countries that declined to support it.

Many conservation organizations, including the World Wildlife Fund, support the proposal. “WWF applauds Monaco,” Dr. Sergi Tudela, head of fisheries for WWF Mediterranean, said on Wednesday. “WWF now appeals to all CITES [members] to vote for the proposal. The current management regime is a total failure and is inadequate to guarantee the recovery of this iconic species — only a stop to global trade can give bluefin tuna the breather it so desperately needs.”

[CaptainAlex]

http://www.noaanews.noaa.gov/stories...uefintuna.html

who wants to buy my 130's ...

[ElMar2530]

Here too.....

http://www.app.com/article/20091014/...14157/1001/rss

[relentless]

Once again we sure are seeing change. It is sickening t see how the new administration bows to PEW and all the other environmental groups. I guess everyone in the NE now has $1200 paper weights and most likely at least three of them. It will be interesting to see how this plays out. IF CITES goes through I would expect to see a full closure on BFT in the US to screw everyone at the expense of EU countries which never followed the rules.

[EJR]

What are the rules on fishing for bft recreationally if either the listing one or two gets passed. I understand the whole commercial aspect of this just wondering if anyone knew what happens for the rec side. Is the fishery totally closed? can you catch and release?

[twofinbluna]

Guys-

As bad as those articles sound, we actually had a pretty major victory yesterday. The US chose not to co-sponsor the CITES listing with Monaco. That was the biggest fear over the last few months- that the US would join with Monaco to drive this process forward. But, again, the US chose not to do this. A lot of work went into winning that first stage and so thanks to everyone for helping out.

As you can see, Lubchenco did say she supports CITES but part of that is for leverage at ICCAT. Yes, it is a bit disturbing to have her playing that kind of game but its what has to be done, to some extent.

But despite the victory yesterday, we are not out of the woods yet and still have a fight ahead of us. The next thing that we need to have happen is for real changes to be made at ICCAT in November. If that does not happen, we are all screwed. I do not even want to think about what will happen to the US fleet- all of it- if a listing occurs. Lets hope it does not get to that point.

[Captain Greg Sears]

What are the rules on fishing for bft recreationally if either the listing one or two gets passed. I understand the whole commercial aspect of this just wondering if anyone knew what happens for the rec side. Is the fishery totally closed? can you catch and release?

Interesting reading http://www.cites.org/eng/disc/species.shtml

Found this interesting also http://www.cites.org/eng/disc/fund.shtml

Looks as though every species or subspecies is treated different some things such as whales you can not even go close to them.

Found it interesting in facts about what countries finance CITES and how much they give. (or how little)

[KP161]

After reading all the articles and some further thought it sounds like the U.S. is ready to play some hard ball with ICCAT and the massive overfishing that has beeen going on for years in the Eastern Atlantic.

To me it sounds like the U.S. is saying to ICCAT "Makes some changes in the Eastern Atlantic, lower their quota like you should have last year and followed your own scientists recommendations on the Eastern Atlantic quota or we're willing to go with a CITES listing and go down with the ship."

To correct this massive overfishing in the Eatsern Atlantic what other choice does the U.S. have? We as a fishery have asked them to leave our tiny quota alone but to do something about the huge quota and complete disregard of that quota in the East. And this is what they are going with.

There is too much $ at stake. The guys in the East (tuna farms/pens, seiners, fish trappers, whatever) are making big money. Half of that big money is still big money. They don't want to go get other jobs. If the U.S. and other countries hold their ground ICCAT will fold and be forced to cut the East quota to resoonable levels. The next step is then make sure their fishery is policed and they abide by the reduced quota. What good is it if the quota in the East is dropped to 10,000 metric tons but they still catch 35,000 metric tons?

With the pop up satellite tags we all know these fish travel the worlds oceans. To a certain degree it is just a matter who gets to "borrow" the fish for a few years before they change their migratory habits.

I obviously do not want anything to happen to our fishery in the U.S. but the time has come for a hard stance on the massive overfishing in the East.

The U.S. should not flinch and watch ICCAT reconsider the East quota.

I for one am sick and tired of watching these juvenile fish get big enough (65-70") to where we say next year will be even better. The fish then change their migratory habits, head to the East for a couple years and get slaughtered never to return.

I wish I owned a fish pen in cape cod bay that all the guys I know that fish could bring over 60-65" fish. We'd then hire a few draggers to scour stellwagon for any bait/fish to feed these tuna. It wouldn't take long to turn the area in to a desert. Make some good money for a few years before it collapsed though wouldn't we? I wouldn't be able to take my grandson trolling for tuna but I'd be able to pay for his college. It would be great.

[clt_capt]

NOAA Agrees with TBF Position on Atlantic Bluefin Tuna Conservation

The Billfish Foundation has learned its efforts this past summer calling for a ban on international trade in Atlantic bluefin tuna has received the support of theNational Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).
On October 15, 2009, both NOAA and the Department of the Interior issued statements supporting a CITES listing for the species. Such a listing would ban all international trade in the species but recreational and commercial fishing could still occur domestically.

In the statement issued today Dr. Jane Lubchenco, Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere and NOAA Administrator, said, "We are sending a clear and definitive statement to the international community that the status quo is not acceptable. Over the past 40 years, the international body that manages bluefin tuna, the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT), has overseen a 72 percent decline in the adult population of the eastern Atlantic and Mediterranean stock of bluefin tuna and an 82 percent decline in the adult population of the western Atlantic stock."

TBF President Ellen Peel said, "We are thrilled to learn that NOAA and the Department of Interior will support an Appendix 1 CITES (Convention for the International Trade in Endangered Species) listing that has been proposed for eastern and western Atlantic stocks of bluefin tuna - a position that TBF recommended last July.

"It is very positive to see the new Administration step forward on this important fish conservation issue. The linchpin now rests with ICCAT to dramatically reduce quotas, stop international trade, close spawning grounds and show that it can stop illegal fishingor face a listing under CITES. Good fishing for all interests is dependent upon healthy fish stocks being in the water. A failure to restore bluefin penalizes all US fishing interests and those who enjoy bluefin tuna."

Decision to be made in November at ICCAT meetings; CITES meetings in March

ICCAT will consider the issue at its annual meeting set for November 6 - 15 at Recife, Brazil. Ms. Peel, who this week is in pre-ICCAT meetings in Washington, has been named to serve as a U.S. ICCAT Commissioner to negotiate for the U.S. at that November meeting. A meeting of the member nations of CITES will take place in March 13 - 24 in Doha, Qatar.
TBF Chief Scientist Dr. Russell Nelson added, "I do not believe that anything short of a fully enforced ICCAT moratorium on international trade of bluefin tuna in the Atlantic will send a message sufficient to avoid a CITES listing. It's frankly unlikely that the illegal and unreported fishing that is landing twice the tonnage recommended by the science can be controlled."

Peel concluded, "We are further encouraged by Dr. Lubchenco's wise choice to support CITES and conservation and the acknowledgement that officials in D.C. are listening to the recreational billfishing community."

More on the background on the situation plus the statements from NOAA and the Interior Department are on the TBF (billfish.org) web site. To read the statement from NOAA, please click here. To read the statement from the Interior Department, please click here.

[twofinbluna]

I hope that everyone here is paying attention to how hard that group is pushing for CITES so if it does happen, and you cannot fish anymore, you will know who to blame. I wish they would just stick to billfish. I applaud RFA for fighting against this, they are the only ones smart enough to know how bad CITES will be for recreational fishermen.

And I love how in their little press release they are not mentioning the fact that the US did not co-sponsor, as they all were hoping for, and made it sound like they got exactly what they wanted.