EU SHARK FISHING POLICY ‘FLAWED’
05.18.07 - Leído 82 veces. Enviar esta notaHelena Spongenberg
NGOs have called for a major change in the EU’s shark fishing policy saying it is inefficient and fails to protect dwindling shark species in European waters
BRUSSELS, Belgium; May 18, 2007.- In its report - “Strengthening European Fisheries Management: Options for Enforcing the Shark Finning Ban” – the Shark Alliance, a coalition of 30 NGOs, asks the EU to improve its shark finning ban.
“Finning” is the process of cutting fins off the sharks – sometimes while the shark is still alive.
Because shark meat is worth very little, the finless and often still-living sharks are then thrown back into the sea to make more room on board ship.
Although the practice is illegal in the EU, lax standards and loopholes in the EU’s enforcement approach allow the practice to continue without penalty, the report says.
Shark finning in European waters has grown from insignificant levels to about a quarter of global demand in recent years, due to a growing middle class in China, where shark fin soup is a symbol of wealth and prestige.
Shark fins are now among the most expensive seafood products in the world, fetching up to €500 per kilogramme, according to the NGOs.
Spain heads the list of shark-finning nations, while France, Italy, Portugal and the UK also contribute to the trade.
A third of European shark species are threatened, especially as many of them reproduce too slowly to be replaced.
The report describes the current EU approach of applying a “fin to carcass weight ratio” as complicated and inadequate, and recommends landing sharks with their fins still attached as the best method for preventing finning.
“The shark finning ban is one of the only measures the EU has to safeguard its declining shark populations, and yet this key regulation is deeply flawed,” said Uta Bellion, head of the Shark Alliance, in a statement on Thursday (17 May).
(EUobserver)
