OLIVE RIDLEY TURTLE CONSERVATION EFFORTS IN ODISHA, INDIA The Olive Ridley Turtle is a Schedule 1 species under the Indian Wildlife (Protection) Act of 1972, and it is listed as ‘endangered’ in the IUCN Red Data Book, and CITES’ Appendix-I. As a signatory to all these treaties, India is responsible for conserving this species of … Read more
IUU fishing threatens the livelihoods and food security of populations that rely on fisheries. Coastal populations and island communities, in particular, rely on the ocean for food and economic survival, thus it’s critical that fish stocks (food fish – sardines in West Africa) be managed in such a way that ensures livelihoods and essential protein are … Read more
The National Court of Ecuador has accepted “Appeal of Cassation” against Chinese Reefer “Fu Yuan Yu Leng 999” for transporting cargo caught through illegal fishing in Galapagos waters. The Court of Cassation of the Ecuador National Court of Justice, unanimously, accepted the appeal filed by the Prosecutor’s Office and ordered the confiscation of the Chinese … Read more
Trading in IUU seafood and mislabeled products distort markets and efforts of legally bound seafood companies and traders that have invested massively in both buying legal quotas for fish stocks as well as technologies associated with harvesting (licenses, VMS, Observers, etc.) and trading in domestic and international markets (E-trade and electronic tools for boat to … Read more
In recent months, the Fu Yuan Yu fleet has come into focus for illegal tuna fishing in the southern Indian Ocean. Back in March this year i wrote about the Fu Yuan Yu tuna fleet which was spotted illegally fishing for tuna in the southern Indian Ocean. Although Sea Shepherd patrol vessel pursued the fleet … Read more
Thailand is a major player in global seafood trade and processing of fishery products. Among the major fish producer countries Thailand was ranked 14 in 2012 with capture fisheries landings of more than 1.6 million tonnes. However, Thailand exhibits its dominance as the third largest exporter of seafood in the world (8.1% of the global … Read more
On 30 March 2016, Gambia’s national assembly ratified the UN agreement on Port State Measures to prevent, deter and eliminate Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated Fishing (IUU). This brings the number of parties formally ratifying the treaty to 25. Pursuant to Article 29, the Agreement shall enter into force thirty days after the date of deposit … Read more
South Korea became the 19th country to ratify the UN Port State Measures Agreement (PSMA) on 14 January 2016. The spree of recent ratifications is seen as a stride in the right direction. If the present pace continues the treaty might come into effect by the first week of June. The PSMA would come into force … Read more
Thai Government intends to spend 215 million baht (approx. 5.9 million) in a new buyback scheme to buy fishing boats from vessel owners. In open access fisheries where there is hardly any credible policy on building of new boats and with more than 30,000 unregulated fishing boats operating from Thai shores the Government decision is truly … Read more
Belize is preparing to roll out the innovative “Managed Access Program” which would soon end open access fishing by more than 3000 licensed commercial fishermen. A soft roll-out of the program is expected in January 2016 for the test run with full run-out expected by June 2016. The Fisheries Department would use the first 6 months … Read more