Following negotiations at the annual meeting of the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT), which took place in Marrakesh, Morocco, from 14 to 22 November, fishing quotas for Bluefin tuna have been increased by 50% over the next three years (see EUROPE 11878).
Total allowable catches (TACs) for Bluefin tuna in the eastern Atlantic and the Mediterranean have been set at 28,200 tonnes in 2018. This is a provisional agreement taken in advance of further negotiations next year. At this time, the TACs for the period from 2018 to 2020 have been set at 28,200 tonnes, 32,240 tonnes and 36,000 tonnes respectively.
Scientific opinion proposed a more cautious increase to 30,000 tonnes (an increase of 30 %). The countries of the southern Mediterranean (Libya, Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia), however, along with Turkey, Iceland and Norway were successful in achieving more. The result is that, with 15,850 tonnes in 2018, 17,536 tonnes in 2019 and 19,360 tonnes in 2020 the European Union will see its relative share of the TAC fall from around 59% to 54%.
The current stock of adult Bluefin tuna is estimated at just under 500,000 tonnes. According to data gathered by the ICCAT scientific committee, 20,098 tonnes of eastern Atlantic Bluefin tuna were fished in 2016.
For the NGO Pew, the quota to 2020 is the highest ever adopted and gives ground for fears of a decline of the species in the near future. WWF says the increase is “unacceptable …when the recovery of the stock is not confirmed yet”. (Original version in French)