September 10, 2010

HSI Supports Regional Shark Finning Workshop in Costa Rica

Humane Society International/Latin America

PUNTARENAS, Costa Rica (September 10, 2010) – A two-day international workshop on shark conservation, hosted by Costa Rica’s Fisheries Authority INCOPESCA and supported by the NGOs Pew and Humane Society International, took place in the Costa Rican port of Puntarenas. The workshop, which focused on the technical aspects of landing sharks with their fins naturally attached to their bodies, was attended by delegates from 13 North, Central and South American countries.

The “fins-attached” method has gradually been gaining international recognition because it is the best response to end the practice of shark finning and ensures fewer shark catches. The United Nations General Assembly, the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and the review process of the UN Fish Stocks agreement have all recommended “fins-attached” policies.

According to Antonio Porras of INCOPESCA, “This workshop was just part of Costa Rica’s continuing effort to promote fins-attached policies globally, and I am pleased that so many of our fellow conservationists were able to attend. We intend to continue pressing for this method to be adopted by individual nations and by all the Regional Fisheries Management Organizations.”

At a meeting of the FAO Committee on Fisheries last year, Costa Rica offered to share its technical expertise in processing sharks that have been landed with their fins attached and suggested that a workshop be convened so that other fishing nations could familiarize themselves with the process. Since 2004, Costa Rican law has mandated that all sharks must be landed at port with their fins partially attached in the natural way.

Delegates heard about INCOPESCA’s experience of landing sharks with their fins partially attached and shared their own experiences. They were also taken to the docks to see the sharks being landed.

“Arguments about how to prevent finning have been going on for years,” said Rebecca Regnery, deputy director of wildlife for HSI. “It’s now time to stop talking and to recognize once and for all that the fins-attached method is the best—in fact the only—way to put an end to the wasteful and barbaric practice of shark finning.”

Facts:

• Sharks are apex predators whose survival affects all other marine species and entire ocean ecosystems.
• "Finning" refers to the act of cutting off a shark's fins and throwing the rest of the shark back into the sea. It is estimated that tens of millions of sharks are killed to supply the wasteful demand for shark fin soup every year.
• For hundreds of years, shark fin soup has been served as a symbol of social status and a traditional way for the elite to display their wealth in Eastern Asian. Countries such as China (including Taiwan and Hong Kong), Singapore, Malaysia, Japan and Thailand import thousands of metric tonnes of shark fins each year.
• The practice of shark finning is global and has led to severe declines in shark populations. Unlike other fish species, sharks produce very few young and mature slowly and consequently, overexploited populations can take years or even decades to recover.
• Most fishing nations do not have finning bans in place, while others require that carcasses be retained, but allow the fins to be removed from the carcasses at sea provided that, when landed and weighed, the fins weigh no more than 5 percent of the weight of the shark. This has resulted in lengthy disagreements over the “correct” weight ratio of the fins. Furthermore, doubts have been raised about the availability of sufficient resources to monitor compliance, which would require the weighing of every shark catch that arrives at dock.
• Fins-attached policies require no weighing, therefore facilitating compliance. Shark conservation is greatly enhanced by fins-attached policies, as fishers have to store every shark that they catch, reducing the total catches and ensuring full usage of the carcasses and decreased wastage.

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Humane Society International and its partner organizations together constitute one of the world's largest animal protection organizations — backed by 11 million people. For nearly 20 years, HSI has been fighting for the protection of all animals through advocacy, education, and hands-on programs. Celebrating animals and confronting cruelty worldwide — On the Web at hsi.org.