Pacific nations urged to consider tuna conservation after US fishing treaty withdrawal
Sydney, 21 January 2016 - The United States withdrawal from a key decades-old tuna fishing treaty with Pacific nations could benefit tuna
conservation efforts, but its fishing rights must be carefully allocated, Greenpeace Australia Pacific said today.
“With the end of this treaty, Pacific nations have the power and opportunity to negotiate for more equitable access to
their fish stocks, and to end the overfishing that threatens many tuna populations,” said Lagi Toribau, Greenpeace
Australia Pacific’s global tuna campaigner.
“The tuna treaty has been problematic from an environmental standpoint, and needed to be reviewed. The tuna industry is
out of control and US-flagged boats have not been exempt from wrongdoing, including the illegal use of destructive
fishing gear,” he said.
The US State Department announced this week it is withdrawing from the South Pacific Tuna Treaty, which has been in
effect since 1988. The treaty secured access to tuna fishing grounds in the territorial waters of Pacific Island nations
for US-flagged vessels. In recent years, Pacific Island nations have pressed for higher access fees to their waters,
which has made renegotiation of the treaty difficult.
Toribau said Greenpeace was concerned about the roughly 6,000 days allocated for fishing vessels each year that Pacific
nations had already set aside for the US fleet to fish, which will be reallocated with the treaty’s demise.
“The treaty secured almost unfettered access for the US to Pacific fishing grounds, and the relatively low access fees
it paid Pacific nations were vastly out of step with the profit being made from Pacific tuna stocks.
“We can expect that other nations that fish in Pacific waters, such as China, Japan, Taiwan, South Korea and those from
the European Union, will now be vying for those days, which are valued at roughly US$68 million.
“Pacific countries need to work swiftly to manage expectations around other countries having access to these fishing
days, as well as US companies that will seek bilateral access with key Pacific countries.
“These fishing powers all have questionable records of compliance, and for years have blocked efforts to make fishing
more sustainable, end illegal and inequitable fishing, and uphold fair labour conditions for people in the industry.
“Pacific Island nations now have a chance to negotiate deals that will ensure sustainable fishing that will benefit
Their communities,” said Mr Toribau.
ENDS