Bridges Trade BioRes • Volume 7 • Number 17 • 5th October 2007

Greenpeace Reports Illegal Fishing by Europeans in Central and Western Pacific

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Greenpeace has linked illegal fishing vessels in the Western and Central Pacific, which are endangering the already critical fish stocks in the area, to European fishing firms.

The environmental watchdog reports that several large European firms, including Albacora, Calvopesca, and Conservas Garavilla, had vessels licensed to fish in the Eastern Pacific. The ships were sent west to illegally fish in the Western and Central Pacific Ocean (WCPO) - often under the flags of convenience. The ‘pirate’ vessels were found fishing off the shores of the island nations of Kiribati and the Cook Islands. These nations, as well as the other numerous tiny Pacific nations in the region, rely heavily on fishing as a source of income and nourishment.

Greenpeace urged the tiny Pacific nations to band together to negotiate better conservation practices and improve enforcement. However, this may prove difficult, as illegal and legal stocks often are mixed, making traceability highly challenging.

The ongoing decline in fish stocks globally has triggered negotiations at the WTO to cut subsidies that lead to unsustainable fishing practices (see related story, this issue).

ICTSD reporting; “European Fishing Pirates Hit Pacific: Greenpeace,” PLANET ARK, 26 September 2007; “Fishy Business: Stolen Pacific tuna in the European market,” GREENPEACE, 25 September 2007; “Robbing from the Poor, Stealing from the Planet,” ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE FOUNDATION.