Posted on June, 06 2002

Gland, Switzerland - WWF, the conservation organization, today congratulated Australia on a bold move to halt pirate fishing in the Antarctic ocean by seeking international legal protection for two highly valuable and vulnerable commercial fish the Patagonian and the Antarctic toothfish.

The Patagonian toothfish is one of the most valuable fish on earth, fetching up to USD 60/kg on the Japanese market and up to USD 40/kg on the European and US markets where it is usually sold under the name of Chilean Sea Bass. Currently international regulation is inadequate to prevent 'pirate fishermen' from catching up to four times the legal catch of the fish and then selling it into the legal market. These fish are acutely vulnerable in particular because they grow slowly to up to 2m in length, do not start to reproduce until they are over six years old, and live to up to 50 years. The consequences of uncontrolled pirate fishing is therefore devastating: in some areas this illegal, unregulated and unreported (IUU) fishing has caused numbers of toothfish to decline by as much as 99%.

"If illegal, unregulated and unreported fishing of the Patagonian toothfish is not halted soon, the remaining healthy stocks of this highly vulnerable fish will face the same catastrophic fate as those which have already been plundered," said Dr. Susan Lieberman, Director of WWF International's Species Programme. "Australia's attempts to protect this fish, and their own legitimate industry, and their efforts to find a global solution to the problem, should be supported by all nations around the world - those that harvest the fish and those that consume it."

Australia has proposed that Patagonian and Antarctic toothfish be listed on Appendix II of the Convention on the International Trade of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), when the convention next meets in November this year. If the CITES listing were to be adopted, it would mean that a system of international trade controls would be set in place, to ensure all trade in toothfish was both legal and sustainable. CITES would extend trade controls to all of its 159 State Parties, making legal controls on toothfish trade much tighter and more difficult to evade.

"WWF believes this listing is vital to effectively combat IUU fishing and ensure both the future sustainability of toothfish stocks and the legitimate toothfish fishery. It is a vital tool to provide consumers with the confidence that this fish is obtain legally and without harm to wild populations," Dr. Lieberman added.

For further information:
Matthew Davis, Communications Manager WWF's Species Programme: email: mdavis@wwf.org.uk