E - Iccat

PANEL APPENDICES
Improving the shark finning Recommendation
Up to 73 million sharks are killed annually to support the global shark fin trade. ICCAT was the first RFMO to
ban shark finning – the wasteful practice of slicing off a shark’s fins and discarding the body at sea – but
loopholes still hamper enforcement of the ban. The existing ban on finning can be strengthened by prohibiting
the removal of shark fins at sea, which will also facilitate collection of species-specific catch data and help
ensure compliance with existing ICCAT conservation and management measures for sharks.
Reviewing implementation of and compliance with existing shark measures
Finally, it has been three years since ICCAT first prohibited retention of the first shark species – the bigeye
thresher shark – and since then several additional shark species have been added (with associated measures
prohibiting landing, transshipment, and trade). It is now time for ICCAT to review the implementation of and
compliance with its shark conservation and management measures.
Laying the foundation for the future of shark fisheries in ICCAT
We appreciate the efforts by Japan to develop a comprehensive shark action plan and agree that it is necessary to
clarify the role of ICCAT in shark management. We believe that Japan has raised some very important issues.
However, the development and adoption of shark conservation and management measures must continue as a
matter of urgency, while any long term plan is developed. Given the vulnerability of many shark species,
delaying measures for years is not an option.
267