ICCAT

20
Nov
2023

PRESS RELEASE: Atlantic manta ray and blue shark conservation advances under UK leadership

EU promotes whale shark protection and risky blue shark quotas as Japan blocks finning measure

The Press Release is available in French and Spanish

Cairo, Egypt. November 20, 2023.  The Shark League member groups are heralding conservation advances for imperiled Atlantic sharks and rays at this year’s meeting of the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) while warning that new measures are still insufficiently cautious to properly safeguard such inherently vulnerable species.  ICCAT Parties agreed provisional protections for mantas and devil rays, as well as whale sharks, reduced quotas for heavily fished blue sharks, and improved processes for ensuring that nations comply with ICCAT fishing and data reporting requirements. Many of the improvements reflect recommendations made in a new Shark League gap analysis.

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13
Nov
2023

ICCAT 2023: POSITION STATEMENT

At the 2023 ICCAT Annual Meeting, Parties have the opportunity to continue leading the world in international management of heavily fished blue sharks while catching up to other Regional Fishery Management Organizations (RFMOs) in the protection of endangered, filter-feeding elasmobranchs and the prevention of finning. Immediate action — based on science and the precautionary approach — is clearly warranted to safeguard these and other exceptionally vulnerable species.

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9
Nov
2023

PRESS RELEASE: New Shark Conservation Report Launched at Atlantic Tuna Meeting Targets Troublesome Gaps

Analysis details problems and recommends remedies for aligning nations’ commitments and actions

This Press Release is available in Arabic, French and Spanish.

London, November 9, 2023.  A new Shark League gap analysis highlights where shark fishing and trading nations are falling short after decades of conservation commitments made through the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES, a global wildlife treaty) and the International Commission for Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT, a regional fishery management organization). The authors:

Continue reading PRESS RELEASE: New Shark Conservation Report Launched at Atlantic Tuna Meeting Targets Troublesome Gaps

9
Nov
2023

New Report: Bridging the Gaps that Hinder Shark Conservation

An analysis of ICCAT Parties’ policies for CITES-listed Atlantic elasmobranchs

Analyzing pivotal international agreements such as the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) and the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT), the Shark League’s latest analysis, “Bridging the Gaps that Hinder Shark Conservation,” scrutinizes the efficacy of existing conservation initiatives and recommends essential improvements.

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8
Nov
2023

ICCAT 2023 NGO Advocacy Letter

A collective effort by 20 Environmental Organizations is underway to address pressing issues in Atlantic tuna fisheries and ecosystems at the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT). The letter, directed to Heads of Delegation, provides specific recommendations for sustainable tuna management.

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3
Aug
2023

Bridging the Gaps that Hinder Shark Conservation

Information Submitted to the ICCAT Compliance Committee, July 16th, 2023

The ICCAT Executive Secretary has forwarded our concerns to all Parties asking for responses by 14 October to be considered by the Committee at the Annual Meeting in November.

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21
Nov
2022

First International Mako Shark Quota Adopted

Fishery managers agree groundbreaking safeguards for CITES-listed, South Atlantic population

This post is also available in: Français (French)

Faro, Portugal. November 21, 2022.  The International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) today agreed the world’s first population-wide fishing quota for highly vulnerable shortfin mako sharks. ICCAT set a South Atlantic catch limit (to cover landings as well as mortality from discarding) within the level recommended by scientists in 2019 and made allocations to individual fishing Parties that are calculated to cut their landings of the Endangered species by 40-60%. The agreement stems from a more precautionary proposal by the European Union and United Kingdom to extend a 2021 ban on particularly depleted North Atlantic shortfin makos to the South Atlantic. Pushback from Namibia and South Africa resulted in negotiations for short-term limits instead.

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