Brussels, 25/09/2015 (Agence Europe) - The NGO Oceana estimates that illegal swordfish landings cost Italy more than €25 million every year, it says in a press release published on Friday 25 September.
Oceana says that the EU and all Mediterranean countries should implement measures to restore the stock of this overfished species. The swordfish stock has been reduced to one third of its size in just 30 years.
In the press release, Oceana is highly critical that the European Union continues to ignore the overfishing of Mediterranean swordfish even though world renowned fisheries scientists have pointed out that Italy has failed to report around 41,000 tons in total over the last 20 years. This amounts to more than €25 million a year and 15% of all catches of this species in the Mediterranean.
The NGO points out that 72% of the declared landings are juveniles (fish that have not had the chance to reproduce), further affecting the recovery of this stock. Illegally caught swordfish continues to be put on local Italian markets at elevated prices of up to €30 per kilo. “The EU is fully aware of this but has so far refused to act”, claims Oceana.
The International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) will meet in Malta in November. Oceana urges Mediterranean member states and the EU to propose and ensure the adoption and implementation of a proper Mediterranean swordfish recovery plan that can rebuild the stock to sustainable levels (MSY) by 2020. (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)