Global Net Tightens Around Illegal Fishing
The international net is starting to tighten around countries and organisations that continue with illegal fishing activities.
Illegal fishing is the general term that refers to Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) fishing. IUU fishing covers a complex range of unlawful actions and entities that include the illegal harvesting, shipment, processing, landing, sale and distribution of fish and fishery products. Whether illegal, unregulated or unreported the end result is the same: depleted fish stocks and a significant reduction in revenue for some of the world’s poorest countries where dependency on fisheries for food, livelihoods and revenues is high.
Such wasteful fishing practices have imperilled one the planet’s most essential food sources, especially for billions of people in the Third World. Economic gain is the main force behind illegal fishing and this fact may hold the key to part of the solution. The demand for fish is growing globally at the same time as the constraints on legal fishing are increasing – together these form a strong motivation for illegal fishing with many opportunities for individual gains. IUU fishing and associated operations are by nature covert and difficult to track and monitor. Recent global analysis has estimated that the value of illegal fishery catches worldwide is over US$9 billion a year.
This past September, 91 countries agreed on a treaty that will refuse to accept ships involved in illegal fishing from entering signatory ports and thus help prevent the fish going to market. The United Nations Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO) hailed the agreement to prevent, deter and eliminate illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing as the first ever global treaty focused specifically on the problem.
The “Agreement on Port State Measures to Prevent, Deter and Eliminate Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated Fishing” commits countries to a number of measures to harden their ports against illegitimate fishers. The first ever global pact, which intends to block illicit fish catches from entering international markets, focuses on ending such violations as fishing without a licence, using illegal gear, disregarding fishing seasons, catching prohibited or undersized species, and fishing in closed areas.
The problem, thanks in part to support from seafood companies who have refused to buy IUU fish, has been greatly reduced in northern European waters, particularly in the Baltic and Barents Sea region where it was a problem. But it still goes on in other parts of the world.
The FAO assistant-director general for Fisheries and Aquaculture, Ichiro Nomura said: “By frustrating responsible management, IUU fishing damages the productivity of fisheries, or leads to their collapse. That’s a serious problem for the people who depend on them for food and income.” Mr. Nomura noted that this “treaty represents a real, palpable advance in the ongoing effort to stamp it out”.
Foreign fishing boats will be required to request permission to dock from specially designated ports ahead of time, transmitting information on their activities and the fish they have on board. The treaty also mandates regular inspections and outlines a set of standards that will be used during inspections, including reviews of ship papers. The treaty calls for information-sharing networks to allow communications to all national authorities about vessels that have been denied access to ports, and it contains provisions intended to assist resource-strapped developing countries meet their treaty obligations.
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