ICCAT and Divers for Makos We turned our focus on fishing nations gathering for the annual meeting of the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) in October 2018. Despite clear scientific advice and growing public support for strict conservation measures, the fishing nations that attend ICCAT failed, once again, to address continued overfishing of mako sharks or strengthen the regional ban on shark finning.
We thank supporters who added their name to the #Divers4Makos petition and joined us in urging top fishing nations - the EU (particularly Spain and Portugal), US, Japan, Brazil, Morocco and Canada - to prohibit the retention of Atlantic shortfin mako sharks immediately, as advised by ICCAT scientists, and push for an Atlantic-wide ban. From South Africa to Thailand, China to Puerto Rico, over 17k divers signed and shared the #Divers4Makos petition urging ICCAT Parties to protect the Atlantic shortfin mako.
The shortfin mako is one of the world’s most economically valuable sharks, sought for meat, fins, and sport. This oceanic species is fished by many nations around the globe yet is not subject to international fishing limits. Scientists have repeatedly warned that makos’ slow growth make them exceptionally vulnerable to overfishing. Project AWARE and our Shark League partners are pushing for a zero catch of mako sharks throughout the ICCAT Convention area which comprises of the entire Atlantic ocean. The precarious state of mako sharks has led the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) to downgrade both species from ‘Vulnerable’ to ‘Endangered’, and for Mexico to propose adding the species to Appendix II of the Convention for International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES), which would prompt a permit system and allow export only if the sharks were found to be sourced from legal, sustainable fisheries. CITES will next consider listing proposals in May 2019.
As we prepare for the 18th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES CoP18), to be held in Sri Lanka from 23 May to 3 June, Project AWARE is once again mobilizing its global community to influence governments and encourage action before it’s too late! With your support, we can ensure that if countries agree to control trade for mako shark species (longfin and shortfin mako) in May 2019, then they will follow through with these commitments to actively reduce fishing pressure on these highly vulnerable shark species.