Bad News for the Bluefin Tuna

The proposed ban of bluefin tuna exports at the Convention on International Trade in Endagered Species (CITES), which was backed by the United States, was rejected March 18 in a 68-20 vote. Japan, which consumeds 80% of the world's bluefin tuna catch, stated that they would have exempted themselves from the ban if it had been passed. European nations abstained from voting after their amendments to the proposal were rejected.

The only hope for bluefin tuna now is the International Commission for Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT), which regulates bluefin tuna fishing but is poorly enforced.

The United States needs to be more involved in ICCAT, please let them know at www.congress.org.

The bluefin tuna are running out of time and need our support!

For more information, go to http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/80beats/2010/03/19/bluefin-tuna-is-still-on-the-menu-trade-ban-fails-at-international-summit/

Jasmine Winchell