Med Sea Alliance’s Post

Urgent action is needed to protect marine biodiversity in the South Pacific! New Zealand remains the only country to deep-sea bottom trawl in the South Pacific threatening seamount ecosystems. At this South Pacific Regional Fisheries Management Organisation (#SPRFMO) meeting, we urge members to unite to protect all seamounts. #ClimateChange is also leading to shifts in the distribution and abundance of fisheries, altering ecosystems, affecting livelihoods, destabilizing food systems and challenging economic security worldwide. The DSCC calls on SPRFMO to agree to: ❌ The closure of Vulnerable Marine Ecosystems (#VMEs) to #BottomTrawling 🎣 Sustainable management of fisheries across the Convention area 🌊 Implementing a precautionary approach on individual species and broader ecosystems, research and monitoring on the effects of climate change and the closure of fishing in vulnerable marine ecosystem areas. Read more about our priorities for this meeting: https://lnkd.in/d6y_ZGVf #DefendTheDeep

🌊 Dive into the world of marine conservation with the National Audubon Society's focus on seabird protection and sustainable fisheries management. Seabirds, like majestic sailors of the sky, have faced a 70% decline since 1950 due to challenges from overfishing, climate change, and pollution. Audubon steps in to reverse this crisis through: - Advocacy for sustainable fisheries management to protect both seabirds and small, schooling fish vital for their survival. - Establishment of marine protected areas to provide safe habitats for seabirds, fish, and marine life essential for coastal communities and economies. - Commitment to research and conservation through the Seabird Institute, advancing knowledge and techniques globally. From protecting the Atlantic Puffins' wintering grounds to supporting seabirds and coastal communities against climate change, Audubon's multifaceted efforts stand as beacons of hope for our feathered friends of the ocean. Let's join hands in safeguarding our marine ecosystems and the winged wonders that call them home. 🦜🌊 https://lnkd.in/gs6s8FJf #marineconservation

This week, delegates meet in Incheon, South Korea 🇰🇷 for the second Conference of the Parties of the Central Arctic Ocean Fisheries Agreement (CAOFA). 🌊 The DSCC will be attending the meeting as an observer for the first time. We will be advocating for a rigorous experimental fisheries protocol, including environmental assessments, protection of ridges, #seamounts and similar topographical features, and protection of all vulnerable marine ecosystems. CAOFA can safeguard one of the last great remaining wildernesses on our blue planet. 🐟 Find out more about CAOFA and why it’s so important: https://lnkd.in/eDcJG6Gm

Take a look at our Open Access article "A geopolitical-economy of distant water fisheries access arrangements", published in npj Ocean Sustainability

New research commissioned by WWF Mediterranean reveals the scale of harmful fisheries subsidies in the Mediterranean: over €1.3 billion in capacity enhancing subsidies were paid between 2014 and 2020, driving overfishing and threatening marine ecosystems. 'Rethinking Fisheries Subsidies: An analysis of Mediterranean public fisheries funds' (https://lnkd.in/etT-SUU4) Urgent reform is needed to ensure that citizens’ money is invested in sustainable fishing practices and marine protection. Ratifying the WTO Fisheries Subsidies Agreement and redirecting harmful and poorly designed subsidies could provide an important source of finance for marine conservation and sustainable livelihood opportunities for fishing communities. With thanks to Nisea, WWF Mediterranean, Marco Costantini, Marina Gomei and Alessio Satta for this timely and important research. #stopfundingoverfishing World Trade Organization Anna Holl, Pauli Merriman, Kristin von Kistowski, Aaron Vermeulen, Daudi Sumba, Kirsten Schuijt

Urgent reform of harmful fisheries subsidies is crucial. The report “Rethinking Fisheries Subsidies” highlights that from 2014-2020, only 3% of public funds in Mediterranean countries went to small-scale fishers, while over 47% supported overfishing. We must redirect funds to protect biodiversity and support sustainable fishing. #stopfundingoverfishing

Having a first hand knowledge of how industrial tuna fisheries are damaging the ocean ecosystem I'm incensed that most national and international conservation organisations studiously avoid this subject. They conveniently say that it's the job of the UN institution the Indian Ocean Tuna Commission (IOTC). The IOTC and others like it in other regions are known as Regional Fisheries Management Organisations (RFMOs). But the faliures of RFMOs have been documented. The IOTC for example has failed in stopping the overfishing of yellowfin tuna. This new Greenpeace report says that the Global Ocean Treaty also known as the High Seas Treaty or (my preference the Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdictions (BBNJ), adopted in 2023, can provide an urgently needed legal tool to address gaps in RFMOs management. It can help protect at least 30% of the oceans by 2030, a target agreed by all governments in 2022, by creating a network of marine sanctuaries across the globe. As of publication date, 90 countries have signed the Global Ocean Treaty and six have ratified it – but for the Treaty to enter into force and be legally binding, at least 60 must ratify. Greenpeace calls on all governments to ratify the Treaty swiftly and to start to develop the first high seas ocean sanctuaries proposals. I remain to be convinced though that the very powerful fisheries companies, such as those in Spain and France, who operate under the protection of the EU, will allow these Ocean sanctuaries to be set up.

#OceanLiteracy 🐙🌊 An increasing demand for seafood has led to fishing practices that are depleting fish populations around the world. In this infographic, we have summarised some of the most important problems facing the fishing industry. At #EuroMarine we believe that in order to restore marine biodiversity and continue relying on the ocean as an important food source, we need to employ more sustainable fishing practices, reducing overfishing and bycatch through sustainable fisheries management. EuroMarine sponsors foresight workshops that critically appraise the existing science and guide the research agenda to ensure these problems recieve the evidence based solutions they need. EuroMarine members are at the forefront, working together wtih industry, policy makers and managers to overcome these challenges. We have endorsed the EU #MissionOcean Charter, which advocates for the protection and restoration of key marine ecosystems and an effective monitoring of #MPA conservation measures. #MissionOcean | #EUMissions | #HorizonEU

Equity in Fisheries: Balancing Conservation & Livelihoods in the Pacific Islands The Pledge of Allegiance ends with the phrase “with liberty and justice for all.” U.S. fishermen, who, as children, would recite this every morning before starting school, have come to question this phrase. Today, “justice for all” seems to have forgotten the U.S. Pacific Island fishermen. Between the constant shrinking of the U.S. exclusive economic zone (EEZ) by the federal government decreasing the waters available for fishing, the ever increasing foreign fishing presence on the seas and in the markets, and using the Pacific Islands to shoulder the burden of the American conservation ethos, justice has turned into “just us.” As the pledge of allegiance binds us to the principles of unity and fairness, so too must the U.S. approach to fisheries by providing justice for equitable access, fair treatment of fishing communities and preservation of sustainable fishing. Read more: https://rb.gy/zm8j2h #balanceinfisheries #fisheriesequity #pacificislandsconservation #sustainable #livelihoods #sponsored Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council

Championed by 16 #Commonwealth member countries 🇦🇺🇧🇿🇲🇺🇸🇨🇬🇧🇻🇺🇱🇰🇳🇿🇫🇯🇨🇦🇨🇾🇰🇪🇰🇮🇲🇻🇦🇬, the Commonwealth #BlueCharter has 10 Action Groups that address topics including: 🥤 Clean Ocean Alliance 🏝 Mangrove ecosystems & livelihoods 🌊 Ocean acidification 🐠 Sustainable coastal fisheries #navakotiram #commonwealthcountries #commonwealthnews #Commonwealth