27 Aug 2008 - Nine Baltic
sea states all scored failing grades in
an annual WWF evaluation of their performance
in protecting and restoring
the world’s most damaged sea.
The assessment, presented
today at the Baltic Sea Festival, graded
the countries on how well they are doing
in six separate areas - biodiversity, fisheries,
hazardous substances, marine transport and
eutrophication - and on how they have succeeded
in developing an integrated sea-use management
system.
The best grade (an F
for just 46 per cent) was received by Germany,
followed by Denmark (41 per cent) and the
worst were Poland (25 per cent) and Russia
(26 per cent).
“It is a shame no country
could be given a satisfactory total score,”
said Lasse Gustavsson, CEO of WWF Sweden.
“The Baltic Sea is influenced by a multitude
of human activities, regulated by a patchwork
of international and national regulations
and authorities.
“What the Baltic Sea
needs now is political leadership that can
look beyond national or sectoral interests
and take an integrated approach to solving
the problems.”
Behind the bad overall
scores there were some rays of hope. Germany
received an A on the biodiversity score
for their protection of marine areas with
around 40 per cent of the country’s sea
areas protected.
Latvia and Lithuania
have taken measures to combat illegal fishing
of cod, partly by giving inspectors the
mandate to impose sanctions on site. Estonia
has a narrow lead in lowering the impact
of hazardous substances.
Also at the festival
WWF awarded Tarja Halonen, president of
the Republic of Finland, with the Baltic
Sea Leadership Award for “her persistent
efforts to unite groups and encourage cross-border
discussions on the future of the Baltic
Sea”.
Finland is the only
country in the region that has developed
a cross-sectoral marine policy and several
other countries are now taking steps to
review their marine management.
“We now have an opportunity
in the area of sea-use management with two
current processes on the European level,”
said Vicki Lee Wallgren, programme manager
for WWF’s Baltic Ecoregion Programme.
She said initiatives
such as the EU’s Maritime Policy and the
EU Baltic Sea Strategy meant that “there
is hope for the Baltic Sea”.
The poor state of the
Baltic Sea environment has received attention
this summer because of the extensive algal
blooms caused by eutrophication and for
recent scientific reports on the vast “dead
zones” on the sea bottom. Seven of the world’s
10 biggest dead zones, where nothing can
survive due to lack of oxygen, are found
in the Baltic Sea.
+ More
Fishing Technology Letting
Turtles Off the Hook
26 Aug 2008 - Alternative
fishing technology has been shown to save
turtles while not affecting fish catches,
according to a report released by WWF and
the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission
(IATTC).
The report demonstrates
how changing from the classic J hook to
circular hooks, providing adequate training
and tools to release turtles accidentally
hooked and enhancing sustainable fishing
practices, can dramatically reduce incidental
catch (bycatch) of marine turtles without
impacting fishing activity.
“The results keep demonstrating
that changing to circular hooks is the right
choice, since it favours turtle conservation
without having an impact on the economy
of artisanal fisheries," said Moises
Mug, Coordinator of the WWF Bycatch Initiative
for the Eastern Pacific. "Together
with fishermen we are building a culture
for sustainable fishing practices that will
guarantee fish stocks in the long term.”
The report - Bycatch
Initiative: Eastern Pacific Program, A Vehicle
Towards Sustainable Fisheries - is a comprehensive
analysis of data collected during four years
of work in eight different countries in
the Eastern Pacific - Mexico, Panama, Costa
Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Colombia,
Ecuador and Peru.
“Our goal is to reduce
the incidental catch of marine turtles from
the long-line fishing operations without
affecting the fisheries activity which is
a main source of food and income for local
communities,” explained Martin Hall, Principal
Researcher for the IATTC.
Data gathered showed
an overall significant trend of bycatch
reduction, with a reduction of up to 89
per cent in the marine turtle bycatch per
thousand hooks. Ninety-five per cent of
all turtles caught in long-line fishing
were recovered alive, while circle hooks
performed as well as J hooks in the catch
rates of tuna, billfishes and sharks fishery.
“This programme is going
beyond an initial focus of saving sea turtles
from bycatch, and is creating the groundwork
toward sustainable artisanal long-line fishing
in the eastern Pacific,” said Amanda Nickson,
Global Leader of WWF’s Bycatch Initiative.
“By working co-operatively,
collecting data and learning how to improve
practices, this programme is living proof
that conservation and industry can work
together for sustainability.”
