31 Jan 2008 - Russia's
application for a caviar export quota makes
nonsense of a commercial caviar harvesting
ban intended to help the recovery of the
decimated sturgeon populations of the Caspian
Sea basin, WWF Russia has claimed.
"If the Government
allows export, de-facto it allows commercial
sturgeon fishing," says Alexey Vaisman,
Senior Programme Officer for Europe-Russia
for Traffic, the world wildlife trade monitoring
network which is a joint programme of WWF
and the International Union for the Conservation
of Nature (IUCN).
Harvesting of Caspian
Sea basin sturgeon fish, the source of caviar,
was this year restricted to populating breeding
farms and for the purposes of scientific
research.
However, this year Russia
has again declared an export quota to the
Convention on International Trade in Endangered
Species (CITES).
Vaisman said last year
was a good example of the confusion surrounding
caviar. The government introduced a ban
on domestic retail sales of caviar with
obligatory destruction of all confiscated
caviar.
“There was also a catch
quota of 110 tonnes from which, at most,
12 tonnes of caviar can be extracted. However,
the export quota equalled 20 tonnes of caviar,”
Vaisman said.
WWF has called on the
Russian government to withdraw its application
for an export quota and put a moratorium
on caviar exports for at least 5 years in
order to help saving the threatened sturgeon
populations.
According to scientific
reports, Beluga sturgeon, Starry sturgeon
and Russian sturgeon populations now almost
entirely consist of fish spawning for the
first time. “Legal and illegal caviar harvesting
has eliminated virtually all spawning sturgeons,”
Vaisman said.
Although sale of caviar
is completely banned in Russia – including
the sale of confiscated caviar and caviar
from farms - it is still sold on markets
and even in large supermarkets.
WWF-Russia is asking
the citizens to stop buying illegal caviar
and to call the Department of Economic Crimes
when they find such a sale is taking place.
WWF is also advising
citizens from other countries not to buy
caviar from Russia, Turkmenistan, Iran,
Azerbaijan or Kazakhstan as it belongs to
the same depleted fish stock.
“If urgent measures
are not taken now, sturgeons will become
extinct in the region where they are most
renowned”, said Vaisman.
Masha Vinokurova, Communication Officer,
WWF-Russia
+ More
WWF urges Russia to
ban caviar exports
31 Jan 2008 - Russia
should stop exporting caviar to help save
the threatened sturgeon population, says
WWF-Russia.
“There is an obvious
contradiction between bans on domestic caviar
sales and commercial caviar harvesting on
the one hand, and maintaining export quotas
for caviar on the other,” said Alexey Vaisman
of the wildlife trade monitoring network
TRAFFIC, a joint programme of WWF and the
World Conservation Union (IUCN).
WWF is urging the Russian
government to withdraw its application for
an export quota and put a moratorium on
caviar exports for at least 5 years in order
to help the threatened sturgeon populations.
Last year, Russia introduced
a ban on retail sale of caviar and obligatory
destruction of all confiscated caviar. This
year, quotas for the Caspian basin were
restricted to form mature spawning schools
at breeding farms and for scientific research.
However, this year again,
Russia has declared an export quota to the
Convention on International Trade in Endangered
Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).
According to scientific
reports, Beluga, Starry and Russian sturgeon
populations almost entirely consist of fish
spawning for the first time, because legal
and illegal caviar harvesting has eliminated
virtually all mature spawning sturgeons.
Last year, the catch
quota for Russian Sturgeon in the Caspian
basin was 110 tons, from which, 12 tons
of caviar at most can be extracted. However,
Russia’s export quota for 2007 equalled
20 tons of caviar.
Although sale of caviar
is completely banned in Russia, including
the sale of confiscated caviar and caviar
from farms, it is still sold on markets
and large supermarkets.
WWF-Russia is also calling
on the public to stop buying this illegal
caviar and to call state Department of Economic
Crimes when they spot caviar sales.
WWF is also advising
consumers from other countries to refrain
from buying caviar from Russia or other
countries of the Caspian region, such as
Turkmenistan, Iran, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan,
as it belongs to the same depleted fish
stock.
“If urgent and radical
measures are not taken, the sturgeon species
can become extinct in a few years in the
region”, says Vaisman.
Masha Vinokurova
Daria Kudryavtseva
END NOTES:
• Sturgeon is one of the oldest existing
fish families in the world. Sturgeons can
live for over 40 years, but only reach sexual
maturity between 6-25 years of age. Because
they are so slow-growing and mature so late
in life, they are particularly vulnerable
to exploitation and to other threats. All
27 sturgeon species were listed in CITES
in 1998 and since then international trade
in caviar and other sturgeon products can
only take place with the relevant permits.
It is estimated that world sturgeon populations
have declined by as much as 70 per cent
in the past few decades.
