Group calls on tuna fisheries for better shark protection
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Wed, Nov 16, 2011
Countries involved in bluefin tuna fishing need to do more to protect the collateral killing of sharks, an environmental group said Tuesday.
Three-quarters of migratory shark species that inhabit bluefin fishing areas are threatened with extinction, the Oceana group warned the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT.)
"The fishing countries of the Atlantic can no longer ignore that shark populations are being decimated by ICCAT fisheries," Oceana manager Elizabeth Griffin Wilson said.
Representatives from dozens of bluefin tuna fishing nations are meeting in Turkey to discuss ways to improve protection for the endangered fish, savoured by many sushi eaters for its firm meat.
Oceana wants the 48 commission members to prohibit the retention of endangered or other particularly vulnerable species, including porbeagle and silky sharks.
The commission already has introduced protections for the bigeye thresher, hammerhead and oceanic whitetip sharks.
The US Pew Environment Group wants fishermen to use new materials that allow sharks to escape, such as nylon fishing lines that can be severed by a shark but not a tuna.
"Banning wire leaders and not allowing vessels to retain certain species would help reduce the vast number of sharks caught and killed in Atlantic fisheries," said Pew shark campaign manager Jill Hepp.
Pew says 73 million sharks are killed each year, mainly for their fins, which are used in soup in some Asian countries.
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ermm.....frog legs as well...
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Originally posted by NeverSayGoodBye:
Pew says 73 million sharks are killed each year, mainly for their fins, which are used in soup in some Asian countries.
Sure or not, so many.
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Originally posted by Dalforce 25:
Sure or not, so many.
It's true... From WWF73 million sharks are killed every year, primarily for their fins. As a result, an increasing number of shark species is been threatened. In 1996 only 15 shark and related species were considered threatened. This has soared by 12 times in over a decade and by 2010 over 180 species were considered threatened, being listed either on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List, or the Appendices of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES).
Sharks are particularly vulnerable to over-exploitation because they are slow-growing, mature at a late age, and have relatively low productivity. This means that their populations are slow to recover once overfished. By removing large numbers of these top predators from our seas, it destabilizes the whole ecosystem and has a detrimental effect on the marine environment and our fish stocks.
The high market demand for shark fin is currently the main driver of unsustainable fishing for sharks globally. Shark fin soup has long been a tradition at Chinese festive celebrations and wedding banquets. But growing demand of shark fin soup is pushing our sharks to extinction.
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Originally posted by Fcukpap:
ermm.....frog legs as well...
You can start a new group protecting frog legs
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lol....
anyways....i enjoyed all of your imaginative posts of pictures...
u must be a very creative person...
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The only best way is not to turn your stomach into crematorium......marine habitats support the function of ecosystem. And interferring their way of life will create future problem to mankind...save the world, save your future - http://www.vegetarian-society.org/
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its easier said then done.
they can complain and complain but nothing will be done unless the sales of shark fins stops.
and we know it'll never stop.
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Originally posted by dragg:
its easier said then done.
they can complain and complain but nothing will be done unless the sales of shark fins stops.
and we know it'll never stop.
.....well, things don't change over night. They're not complaining, more on drumming up awareness, and it need constant effort. In fact, things are looking up gradually, it takes time. Even China is joining in the campaign in stopping eating shark fins.take singapore for example, the support is getting momentum. Cold Storage has stopped selling shark fins in their supermarkets. More and more couples are dong away with shark fins soup in their wedding dinner's menu.
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Then when the sharks repopulate, they start eating up all the tunas in the world.
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Originally posted by charlize:
Then when the sharks repopulate, they start eating up all the tunas in the world.
.....then we can make sushi out of shark meat -
There should be balance between saving Sharks and respecting food culture of chinese.
I am against blindly moving against shark fin soup.
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Originally posted by Dalforce 25:
There should be balance between saving Sharks and respecting food culture of chinese.
of cos culture and tradition need to be respected. The call is not to stop people from eating shark fins totally or comprehensively. Predetors of the deep ocean need to be respected too. -
Originally posted by NeverSayGoodBye:
of cos culture and tradition need to be respected. The call is not to stop people from eating shark fins totally or comprehensively. Predetors of the deep ocean need to be respected too.There should be a balance.
In Singapore there are always tendencies to go to extremes. Like the stop at 2 policy and the flooding of aliens policy. Both policies have produced disruptive results.
We should watch out against such extreme tendencies.
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I love shark fins. yummy.
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