Reuters 7 Oct 08;
ROME (Reuters) - Italy overshot its quota of bluefin tuna last year by five times, showing that rules meant to save the giant fish from extinction were failing, the conservationist group WWF said on Tuesday in a report.
WWF said Italy was 700 tonnes over quota and has a fishing fleet capable of landing twice what it is legally allowed.
"Italy's illegal activity in the Mediterranean bluefin tuna fishery is not just a threat to this magnificent species, but also jeopardizes the future of those trying to fish this resource in a sustainable and legal way," said Michele Candotti of WWF, formerly the World Wildlife Fund.
Italy has launched legal proceedings against the European Commission for curtailing the hunting season and says it did not reach its tuna quota this year due to the European ban which also applies to Cyprus, France, Greece, Malta and Spain.
The EC said in June that some Italian tuna fishing vessels exceeded their quota by between 100 and 240 percent this year.
Bluefin tuna are known for their huge size, power and speed, with maximum weights recorded in excess of 600 kg (1,300 lb). Since last year, market prices for the delicacy have tripled: in Japan a single fish can cost up to $100,000.
WWF analyzed trade data and used aerial surveys to monitor Italian fishing activities. It says spotter planes were regularly used to help fish the tuna -- a practice which has been outlawed, and that many Italian tuna catches were not recorded.
WWF said it would present its findings to the Commission and to the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT), which sets quotas and is due to meet next in November to review conservation measures.
WWF is calling for a moratorium on bluefin tuna hunting to allow stocks to recover from what it says are levels that endanger the species' survival.
It is also asking consumers, retailers and restaurants to boycott the fish which is a prized delicacy, especially in sushi and sashimi dishes where cuts are often known as toro or maguro.
(Reporting by Robin Pomeroy; Editing by Louise Ireland)
Italy's bluefin tuna fishing 'out of control': WWF
Yahoo News 7 Oct 07;
Italy's fishing of bluefin tuna is "totally out of control," the Worldwide Fund for Nature charged Tuesday, calling for a three-year moratorium on fishing for the species in the Mediterranean.
In a statement, the Italian section of the WWF denounced "widespread and repeated lawlessness over the course of years" in fishing for the lucrative species, which is highly prized in Japan.
WWF blamed Italy's overfishing on a "lack of control, clandestine fishing boats, unregistered transfers of live tuna to foreign fish farms (and) a presence of organised crime" among other factors.
In conclusions addressed to the European Commission and the Italian agriculture and fisheries ministry, WWF recalled the EU decision to halt industrial fishing of bluefin tuna in mid-June, two weeks early, because quotas for 2008 were already reached.
But Italy has exceeded the allowed catch for 2008 by "at least 700 tonnes," WWF said.
Both Italy and France opposed the decision, questioning the European Commission's figures and asserting that their fishing industries had not reached even half their quotas.
Large quantities of fish including bluefin tuna "are not registered at ports when they arrive," WWF said, adding that fish "are also sold illegally on markets infiltrated by the mafia."
The environmental group said fishermen also make illegal use of aircraft to spot schools of bluefin.
It said 283 Italian boats are plying the waters for bluefin, nearly 100 more than the authorised number.
Calling for the moratorium, WWF said 2007 was already a "dire" year for bluefin, with quotas exceeded by 40 percent.
An independent panel said last month that the management of bluefin tuna fishing in the Mediterranean was "an international disgrace."
After reviewing the performance of the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT), it recommended an immediate suspension of all fishing for East Atlantic and Mediterranean bluefin tuna.
Today more than 50,000 tonnes of bluefin tuna are caught every year in the Mediterranean. To prevent stocks from collapsing, that figure should be limited to 15,000 tonnes in the short term, according to ICCAT.
