America Pushes for Bluefin Recovery

In an attempt to help the dwindling population of Atlantic and Mediterranean Bluefin tuna, America has begun to actively support reducing the annual Bluefin catches to 15,000 tons. This is a reduction by over half as the annual catch four years previously has been 32,000 tons. In the referenced article, Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez states, “The United States wants to manage commercial tuna fishing in an environmentally sound way. We want to limit harvests to sustainable levels to ensure the future of tuna stocks and the fishermen who depend on them. We will continue to work with the world's fishing community towards these goals."

The current problem is that other nations, who also fish for Bluefin, are not committed to the act of recovery and are ignoring the scientific evidence that is showing that the species will be close to extinction if overfishing continues. Until there is a world wide agreement on limits and additional measures taken in implementation, monitoring and control, we will continue to see the Bluefin population levels drop.

For the full article, please visit the following link:

http://www.aquanet.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1078&Itemid=2

-Kyle Laszlo