EU Promises Tighter Fishing Laws To Protect Sharks

Jeremy Smith, PlanetArk 30 Apr 09;

LUXEMBOURG - European Union ministers called on Thursday for urgent action to tighten hunting controls on sharks, which are seriously threatened by chronic overfishing and one of the world's most vulnerable predators.

Only two out of dozens of shark species in EU waters have annual catch quotas, instituted about a year ago, and scientists say around a third of the shark species found in European waters are at risk due to persistent overexploitation.

The EU barely regulates shark fishing, despite its role as a major importer and exporter of shark meat and products.

EU Fisheries Commissioner Joe Borg has suggested putting limits on shark catches, stricter rules on fishing tackle, and reductions in the number of days on which trawlers may hunt for sharks in sensitive areas.

Borg's suggestions, still far from being formal proposals for changing EU law, also cover related species such as skates and rays. They would apply wherever the European fleet operates, including outside EU waters, and attempt to regulate the controversial practice of slicing high-value fins off sharks.

"The council (of EU ministers) is pressing the (European) Commission to do something because this isn't an actual proposal, more of a wish-list. In reality, they're not going to come up with anything until next year," one EU diplomat said.

Since the mid-1980s, sharks have come under increasing pressure from fishermen lured by soaring demand and high prices.

They are hunted mainly for their fins, used to make shark fin soup, a traditional Asian dish. Fins fetch up to 1,000 euros ($1,300) each in Hong Kong, the world's main market for fins.

Other parts such as meat, skin, cartilage and liver oil are also valuable as they can be used to make cosmetic ingredients, medicinal supplements and jewellery.

In 2003 the EU banned "finning" -- cutting fins off the living shark and dumping the low-value carcass at sea -- though environment groups say the law is still not strict enough.

Sharks are often scooped up as a by-catch with other species and thrown back into the sea, where they usually don't survive. They have low fertility rates and become sexually mature only late in life; the spurdog shark has a two-year gestation period.

Spain is a leading exporter in the shark fin market, followed by France, Portugal and Britain.

(Editing by Farah Master)