WWF advocates for integrating conservation into fisheries management, which includes reducing the impacts of fishing on marine life.
Integrating conservation into fisheries management
The underlying base for all our fisheries work is ecosystem-based management (EBM).
EBM aims to achieve sustainable exploitation of natural resources by balancing the social and economic needs of human communities with the maintenance of healthy ecosystems. This includes measures to minimize bycatch and damage to marine habitats.
Our work to reduce the impacts of fishing through EBM includes:
EBM aims to achieve sustainable exploitation of natural resources by balancing the social and economic needs of human communities with the maintenance of healthy ecosystems. This includes measures to minimize bycatch and damage to marine habitats.
Our work to reduce the impacts of fishing through EBM includes:
- Certifying sustainable fisheries: Consumer demand for 'eco-friendly' fish can act as an extremely powerful market incentive for better fisheries management. The certification process of the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC), which WWF supports, includes a management framework for fisheries to reduce bycatch.
- Protecting important marine habitats from fishing: Together with artisanal and commercial fishers around the world, we are supporting the creation of no-take zones, particularly in vulnerable deep-sea areas and on coral reefs.
Protecting important habitats from fishing
Marine protected areas and no-take zones are important tools for reducing the impact of fishing in sensitive and valuable areas.
WWF has helped create a number of such zones and areas around the world. For example, our campaigns contributed to a new zoning plan for Australia’s Great Barrier Reef Marine Park that saw commercial and recreational fishing prohibited in 33% of the park.
Our work also contributed to the creation of Australia’s 65,000km2 Heard Island and McDonald Islands Marine Reserve. The reserve includes deep-sea areas and is thus far the largest area in the world to be protected from commercial harvesting.
Similarly, we successfully worked for the establishment of Deep-Sea Fisheries Restricted Areas in three parts of the Mediterranean high seas.
WWF has helped create a number of such zones and areas around the world. For example, our campaigns contributed to a new zoning plan for Australia’s Great Barrier Reef Marine Park that saw commercial and recreational fishing prohibited in 33% of the park.
Our work also contributed to the creation of Australia’s 65,000km2 Heard Island and McDonald Islands Marine Reserve. The reserve includes deep-sea areas and is thus far the largest area in the world to be protected from commercial harvesting.
Similarly, we successfully worked for the establishment of Deep-Sea Fisheries Restricted Areas in three parts of the Mediterranean high seas.
News
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Coastal states coalesce for sustainable tuna in the Indian Ocean
WWF welcomes the efforts of Indian Ocean countries to take leadership of the future of tuna management and to make further progress towards ...
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Slow progress towards tuna conservation in the Eastern Pacific Ocean
WWF welcomes the adoption of several conservation and management measures for tropical tunas in the Eastern Pacific Ocean (EPO) by the ...
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Late night deal on fisheries lacks decisive action on fish stocks
Political compromise risks continuing malaise of fishing communities
Publications
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WWF Analysis: Recovery of European fish stocks and the Reform of the Common Fisheries Policy
New scientific analysis from environmental organisation WWF reveals recovery of European fish stocks will take more than 100 years under current ...
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WWF Fish Campaign newsletter - May 2013
As part of WWF's campaign for a future sustainable Common Fisheries Policy (CFP), we have created a newsletter aimed at raising awareness of our ...
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Overfishing: you can end it! - NGO briefing
WWF, BirdLife, Greenpeace, Oceana and Ocean 2012 briefing on the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) for the European Parliament plenary vote on 06 ...
