Sea Shepherds Aim for Mediterranean Bluefin Tuna Poachers

10 by Timothy Hurst on May 4, 2010

The Steve Irwin will be trying to protect bluefin tuna in the Mediterannean (Photo: Sea Shepherd)

The Sea Shepherds have set sail for the Mediterranean to protect another giant of the sea being hunted to extinction -- and this one isn't making the sushi industry very happy.

The Sea Shepherd Conservation Society has become famous in recent years for its campaigns against Japanese whalers in the Southern Ocean. However, as the group's name suggests, it is not just a 'whale shepherd' but a shepherd for the whole sea.

The Sea Shepherds played an instrumental role in banning the killing of dolphins by US tuna companies in the 1980s. Additionally, in true maverick style, it helped to enforce that ban itself and also helped to keep Mexican tuna companies away from dolphins in the Eastern tropical Pacific.

Now, the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society has launched a campaign to protect a fish that is much closer to the plates of Americans and Europeans than whale meat has ever been: bluefin tuna. Bluefin tuna has become one of the most popular fishes served in sushi restaurants around the world -- and especially in Japan.

On May 1st, Sea Shepherd's flag ship Steve Irwin left New York City for the Mediterranean and Operation Blue Rage, a campaign to stop a variety of illegal activities (poaching and extreme overfishing) that are seriously threatening the very existence of bluefin tuna.

Declining bluefin tuna stocks

Stocks of bluefin tuna have fallen by roughly 85% since the industrial fishing era began and the Atlantic bluefin fisheries have decreased a staggering 70% in the last 30 years. Yet despite quotas that are arguably too high to begin with, quotas are still being ignored in many places.

"Bluefin quotas are set at a ludicrously high 13,500 tons by the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT), but realistically over 60,000 tons are killed every year. The scientific community believes bluefin tuna may be extinct in the Mediterranean Sea in less than 5 years."

Sea Shepherd Founder Captain Paul Watson is angry that the bluefin tuna crisis has gotten so out of hand. "The fishing industry is literally investing in the extinction of this species so that they can control the price by hoarding the entire supply of bluefin tuna in cold storage," says Watson.

"This kind of greed cannot be allowed to continue.”

But will we see the same kind of dramatic interventions in the Med as we have come to expect in the Southern Ocean? The Sea Shepherds say they plan on doing "everything possible within the boundaries of international law to protect the magnificent bluefin."

Image Credits: Sea Shepherd Conservation Society; adulau via flickr/Creative Commons

Ted
I’m curious as to how the SSCS plans on identifying the poachers from the people who are fishing legally. Targeting whalers is easy – there are only a handful of them. If you see a boat out there in the Antarctic, they are probably whaling. But, there are hundreds of fishing boats out in the Mediterranean, and not all of them are fishing for bluefin. How will they tell the difference between a tuna poacher and a squid fisherman?
Brian
These are the type of people that will spike a tree and kill a human being who is just trying to make a living in order to save a tree. They are such douches.
Jaluk
Poor ship driving skills, now coming to your local coast.
http://www.oneworldtosee.com/ Walin
If they try to pull the same ***** in the Mediteranean like they tried to do with the japanese, they are going to get a whole different result. Japanese try not to be so aggresive due to their nature to look politically correct and avoid trouble. Mediteranean countries are no pussy! They are going to bust their asses and then deal with what happens afterwards…. not to mention it’s ***** Tuna, not whales… everyone loves to eat tuna!
http://www.kindnessinc.org/ David
Interesting article. I had bluefin tuna in one of the Japanese Restaurants some time back and it was delicious.
George Washington Hayduke
David is an example of the kind of insensitive ecologically ignorant type of human being that is destroying this planet. Eat the oceans and when the oceans die, we all die. Thanks David, you arrogant suicidal dipshit. And Brian, no one has ever been killed by a tree spike bozo boy. Get an education or shut up about things you know nothing about. Go Sea Shepherds. At least a few people give a fig for this planet.
Ed Miller
If the West isn’t awake enough to care about the Mediterranean, the other seas are doomed. The bluefin is a magnificent fish whose existence depends on educated people showing a moderate level of concern for the well-being of one of the more manageable seas on the planet. This is a hearty fish whose disappearance is an indicator that industrial fishing is OUT OF CONTROL. Can we show a LITTLE self-control as consumers and democratic citizens and let this species exist outside of Japanese freezers? The Sea Shepherd crew is confronting what I hope will be a pivotal indicator of how ASLEEP the sushi-loving vanguard of our consumerist culture is. Maybe a few observers will connect the dots between the bluefin and their priorities as consumers, breadwinners, and citizens.
cassy
Check out this tear jerker video of Paul Watson talking about why he became an Activist. http://bit.ly/aoT9fS
http://friendfeed.com/rahulmethra1/d929e480/propiedades-rosa-de-bulgaria Kathlene Mailloux
Cutting edge of using treatment facility can be was able simply by seasoned and nurse practitioners in order to avoid treatment plan in order to afflicted with mental complications. The quality of another atmosphere designed for much better treatment method as compared with doctor’s offices. For that reason, you can see a safe and secure together with adoring area to persist any process of recovery. Organic treatment facility will provide rigorous treatment plan connected with major depression, stress, stress etcetera with very reasonably priced charge. They have extensive medication services to get the highest possible a better standard of attention with as many as 5 various specific treatment method lessons per week. You will discover numerous class rehabilitations, neurofeedback periods, as well as of utilizing holistic techniques including workout, mindfulness mind-calming exercise, nap people in addition to loved ones treatment method periods of the or teen suffering from sadness. As a parent or perhaps guard, you might want to be sure the youngster or even teenager often goes to the advice period. It might be crucial of the fact that kid takes good medicine within routine period of times.
Pingback: Dive Instructor Arnaud: The Most Interesting Man in the World « The Poe Log