Reps. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Fla.) and Robert Wittman (R-Va.) recently cosponsored a bipartisan letter urging the Obama administration to support international protections for Atlantic bluefin tuna. Since 1970, Atlantic bluefin tuna populations have declined by more than 80 percent. Without protective conservation measures, Atlantic bluefin tuna could face commercial extinction. Thirty-two Members of Congress joined the cosponsors and signed this letter which was delivered to the Obama Administration this past Friday.
Atlantic bluefin tuna race across the ocean at blazing speeds, dive to depths of 3,000 feet and migrate thousands of miles a year. They're also one of the ocean's top predators and one of the world's largest vertebrates, weighing up to 1,500 pounds. But these fish are too tasty for their own good. Just last month, a 511-pound tuna sold at Tokyo's famed Tsukiji fish market for $175,000. Overfishing and the growing demand for high-end sushi have driven this majestic species toward the brink of collapse.
Fortunately, a historic moment for Atlantic bluefin tuna could be close at hand. From March 13 - 25, the government of Qatar will host the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) in Doha. At this meeting, 175 member countries - including the U.S. - could determine the fate of this great fish. Atlantic bluefin tuna have been proposed for a CITES Appendix I listing. This listing, the highest level of protection - under CITES - for any given species, would prohibit all international trade in commercially caught bluefin.
President Obama has the opportunity to call on those U.S. delegates attending CITES to protect Atlantic bluefin tuna. U.S. support for this proposal, which is endorsed by recreational fishing and conservation organizations, could create the momentum needed for it to pass.
Lee Crockett, Pew's federal fisheries policy director, would be happy to speak with you about this recent bipartisan effort to protect Atlantic bluefin tuna. He can also discuss why the U.S. must support an Appendix I listing for bluefin tuna at CITES next month.
To read the letter to the Obama administration, go to http://www.pewtrusts.org/news_room_detail.aspx?id=57429.
To learn more about CITES and Atlantic bluefin tuna, go to www.pewenvironment.org/CITES.
To read a report detailing the domestic economic impacts of a CITES Appendix I listing for bluefin tuna, go to http://www.pewtrusts.org/our_work_report_detail.aspx?id=56540.
