In March, nations will vote on Monaco's proposal for an Atlantic bluefin tuna trade banThe Atlantic bluefin tuna (thunnus thynnus) has seen better days, when it wasn't overfished. But those days are long gone.
It is on the verge of a population collapse as man's appetite for the fish has skyrocketed around the world, driven in large part by the international sushi industry.
According to both the United Nation's Food and Agricultural Organization and the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT), all populations of Atlantic bluefin tuna have declined by at least 85% from their unexploited state.
Japanese fishermen have been found selling immature fish, an indication that there are not enough breeding adults left in the ocean to replenish their numbers.
Earlier this year, to support "The End of the Line," the first major documentary about overfishing, Greta Scacchi, Emilia Fox and Terry Gilliam got naked for a photo as they urged consumers to buy only sustainable fish to help fish stocks recover.
In March 2010, nations around the world will have a chance to vote on listing the Atlantic bluefin tuna on the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) Appendix I, which will introduce a global trade ban.
This ban, proposed by Monaco, will help curb the decline of this critically endangered species.
The big tuna-eating nations like the U.S. and Japan (which is the biggest, with an annual consumption approaching half-a-million tons) have to get on board and stop eating this majestic fish -- at least until its populations can recover.
image: Tom Puchner
Posts
