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Año 2011, núm. 9 |25United States and the European Union to strengthen cooperationto combat ILLEGAL FISHINGNOAA Administrator Dr. Jane Lubchenco andMaria Damanaki, European Union commissionerfor maritime affairs and fisheries, will sign a historicstatement today pledging bilateral cooperation tocombat illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing, knownas IUU fishing—a first for the longstanding partnershipbetween the U.S. and the E.U. on fisheries management.The European Union and United States rank first and third,respectively, as the world’s top seafood importers (Japan issecond). Globally, illegal fishing deprives legal fishermenand coastal communities of up to $23 billion of seafood andseafood products annually. This puts honest fishermen at adisadvantage in the global marketplace.The U.S. and the E.U. make it clear that they are committedto cooperating on combating IUU fishing as the only effectiveway of ending these practices. They agree to work togetherto support the adoption of effective management measuresin regional and international organizations to combat IUUfishing; promote tools that prevent IUU operators frombenefiting economically from their illegal activities; exchangeinformation on IUU activities; and promote the sustainableuse of fisheries resources while preserving marine biodiversity.“Illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing is one of themost serious threats to American fishing jobs and fishingcommunities, as well as to the health of the world’s oceans,”said Dr. Lubchenco, who is also under secretary of commercefor oceans and atmosphere. “International cooperationacross oceans will help us maintain a level playing field forour fishermen by strengthening enforcement and preventingillegal fishing.”“IUU fishing is a criminal activity, and we have the duty to doeverything possible to stop this practice,” said Damanaki. Byjoining forces, we make it harder for culprits to get away withtheir dirty business.”Individually, the United States and the E.U. have already putin place a number of legal measures to combat IUU fishing,such as the U.S. High Seas Driftnet Fishing MoratoriumProtection Act that identifies countries engaged in IUU fishingand an E.U. regulation that blocks illegal seafood importswithout the required certifications. Both participate actively ininternational fishery management organizations and promoteinternational instruments to address IUU fishing.The U.S. is turning a corner in ending overfishing andrebuilding stocks. Landings have increased by more than 200million pounds and all coastal regions of the country sawincreases in total value of these landings in 2010, over lastyear. Meanwhile, the E.U. is in the process of reforming itsCommon Fisheries policy designed to rebuild its own fisheriesand is looking to learn from the United States’ success stories.Beyond domestic boundaries, there is an increasing need forinternational cooperation, especially among major fishingand seafood-importing nations, to improve global fisheriesmanagement of shared marine resources and to preservethe associated employment and other economic benefits ofsustainable fisheries.The document signed today by the United States and theEuropean Union is a building block that will help achievethese goals.NOAA’s mission is to understand and predictchanges in the Earth’s environment, from the depthsof the ocean to the surface of the sun, and to conserveand manage our coastal and marine resources. Join uson Facebook, Twitter and our other social media channels.http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/ia/ Bilateral statement: www.nmfs.noaa.gov/stories/iuu