Shark finning

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NOAA agent counting confiscated shark fins

Shark finning refers to the removal and retention of shark fins and the discarding of the rest of the fish. Shark finning takes place at sea so the fishers only have to transport the fins.

Shark finning is widespread, and largely unmanaged and unmonitored. Shark finning has increased over the past decade largely due to the increasing demand for shark fins for shark fin soup and traditional cures, improved fishing technology, and improved market economics.

Some researchers believe that from 1996 to 2000, 26 to 73 million sharks were traded yearly. The annual median for the period was 38 million, nearly four times more than the UN estimates but considerably lower than those of many conservationists.[1] Shark fins are a billion dollar industry.[2]

Process

According to wildlife conservation much of the sharks' fin trade uses fins cut from living sharks, called finning.[3] Because shark meat is worth much less, the now finless and often still-living sharks are thrown back into the sea to make room for more of the valuable fins.[3] In the ocean, the sharks either die from suffocation or are eaten because they are unable to move normally.

Impact and reporting

Line graph showing the rapidly growing annual shark harvest
Chart showing shark fishing on the rise, from 1950 to 2004

According to Giam Choo Hoo, the longest serving member of The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora Animals Committee, "The perception that it is common practice to kill sharks for only their fins - and to cut them off whilst the sharks are still alive - is wrong.... The vast majority of fins in the market are taken from sharks after their death."[4] However, some researchers dispute this claim after extensive examination of fin sourcing and fisheries data; one study of sharks harvested for their valuable fins estimates that between 26-73 million sharks are killed each year worldwide,[5] which is almost three times higher than official Food and Agriculture Organization estimates.[6]

The crew of the conservation vessel Ocean Warrior witnessed and photographed industrial-scale finning within Costa Rica's Cocos Island National Park protected marine area.[7] The practice is featured in the documentary Sharks: Stewards of the Reef, which contains footage from Western Australia and Central America and also examines shark finning's cultural, financial and ecological impacts. Underwater photographer Richard Merritt also has witnessed finning of living sharks in Indonesia where he saw immobile finless sharks lying on the sea bed still alive below the fishing boat.[8] Finning has been witnessed and filmed within a protected marine area in the Raja Ampat islands of Indonesia.[9]

Photo of triangular fish fin protruding from the water
Dorsal fin of a shark

Animal welfare groups vigorously oppose finning on moral grounds and also because it is one cause for the rapid decline of global shark populations.[3] On the IUCN red list there are 39 species of elasmobranches (sharks and rays) listed as threatened species (Critically Endangered, Endangered or Vulnerable).[10] CITES lists three sharks in Appendix II: the basking shark, the great white shark, and the whale shark. Appendix II lists those species that are not in danger of extinction, but which require controls on international trade to maintain their populations. It is estimated that 10–100 million sharks are slaughtered each year for their fins with a median figure of 38 million.[1] The industry is valued at US$1.2 billion; because of the lucrative profits, there are allegations of links to organized crime.[2][11] They also raise questions on the medical harm from the consumption of high levels of toxic mercury reportedly found in shark fins.

Photo of single-masted boat at sea
Shark fin fishing boat off the Galapagos, Ecuador

Numbers of some shark species have dropped as much as 80% over the last 50 years.[12] Some organizations claim that shark fishing or bycatch (the unintentional capture of species by other fisheries) is the reason for the decline in some species' populations and that the market for fins has very little impact – bycatch accounts for an estimated 50% of all sharks taken[3] – others that the market for shark fin soup is the main reason for the decline.[12] Tommy Cheung, the legislator representing Hong Kong's catering sector, said: "I don't believe sharks are an endangered species. Some species of shark may be, but not all shark's fin comes from certain species. There are a lot of species that are plentiful."[13] There is no reliable count for the numbers taken in the shark fin trade and thus it is hard to prove the claims on either side of the argument.[3]

According to Giam's article, "sharks are caught virtually all parts of the world. Despite the strongly declared objectives of the Fisheries Commission in Brussels, there are very few restrictions on fishing for sharks in European waters. The meat of dogfishes, smoothhounds, cat sharks, skates and rays is in high demand by European consumers...The situation in Canada and the United States is similar: the blue shark is sought after as a sport fish while the porbeagle, mako and spiny dogfish are part of the commercial fishery...the truth is this: Sharks will continue to be caught and killed on a wide scale by the more organized and sophisticated fishing nations...targeting shark's fin soup will not stop this accidental catch. The fins from these catches will be thrown away or turned into animal feed and fertilizers if shark's fin soup is shunned."

In March 2011, the VOA Special English service of the Voice of America broadcast a 15-minute science program on shark finning.

International reaction

Many countries now prohibit finning; however, many international waters are unregulated. International fishing authorities are considering banning shark fishing (and finning) in the Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea. Finning is banned in the Eastern Pacific,[14] but shark fishing and finning continues unabated in most of the Pacific and Indian Ocean.[3] In countries such as Thailand and Singapore, public awareness advertisements on finning have reportedly reduced consumption by 25%.[citation needed] In 2007, Canadian filmmaker and biologist Rob Stewart created a film, Sharkwater, which exposes the shark fin industry in detail.

China

Photo of dried, off-white, triangular shark fin in display case
A dried shark fin on display with dried sea cucumbers and abalone.

NBA All-Star Yao Ming pledged to stop eating shark fin soup at a news conference on August 2, 2006. Yao's comments were largely unreported in the Chinese media and drew a reproach from Chinese seafood industry associations. Ironically, shark fin soup was on Yao Ming's wedding dinner menu.[15][16] U.S. basketball player Tracy McGrady, a team mate of Yao's, reportedly said that he was impressed by the soup when he tried it for the first time, but was criticized by the Hong Kong branch of the World Wide Fund for Nature for his remark.[17] Late Australian naturalist Steve Irwin was known to walk out of Chinese restaurants if he saw shark fin soup on the menu.[18] The Chinese-American chef, Ken Hom, sees the West doing little to protect stocks of cod and caviar-producing sturgeon despite the outcry over shark-finning, but he also stresses the wastefulness of harvesting only the fins.[19]

Hong Kong

Hong Kong Disneyland dropped shark fin soup from its wedding banquet menu after international pressure from environmental groups, who threatened to boycott its parks worldwide despite the high demand for the delicacy in China.[20] The University of Hong Kong has banned shark fin soup on campus.[21]

Malaysia

On September 15, 2007, Malaysia's Natural Resources and Environment Ministry Azmi Khalid banned shark's fin soup from official functions committing to the Malaysian Nature Society (for conservation of shark species).[22]

New Zealand

The great white sharks have been given full protection in the territorial waters of New Zealand[23] but shark finning is legal on other shark species if the shark is dead. The Royal Forest and Bird Protection Society of New Zealand are campaigning to raise awareness of shark finning[24] and a number of foodies have fronted the campaign.[25]

Palau

In 2009, the Republic of Palau created the world's first shark sanctuary. It is illegal to catch sharks within Palau's EEZ, which covers an area of 230,000 square miles (600,000 km2). This is an area about the size of France. President Johnson Toribiong also called for a ban on global shark finning, stating: "These creatures are being slaughtered and are perhaps at the brink of extinction unless we take positive action to protect them."[26]

United States

Bill Clinton banned finning in the United States and with U.S.-registered vessels, but not foreign-registered vessels. Shark fins cannot be imported into the U.S. without the associated carcass. In 1991, the percentage of sharks killed by U.S. longline fisheries in the Pacific Ocean for finning was approximately 3%. By 1998, that percentage had grown to 60%. Between 1991 and 1998, the number of sharks retained by the Hawaii-based swordfish and tuna longline fishery had increased from 2,289 to 60,857 annually, and by 1998, an estimated 98% of these sharks were killed for their fins.[citation needed]

In 2010, Hawaii became the first state to ban the possession, sale and distribution of shark fins. The law became effective on July 1, 2011.[27]

In January 2011, President Barack Obama signed the Shark Conservation Act into law to close the loopholes of the 2000 Shark Finning Prohibition Act. Specifically, the new law prohibits any boat to carry shark fins without the corresponding number and weight of carcasses, and all sharks must be brought to port with their fins attached.[28][29]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b Nicholas Bakalar (2006-10-12). "38 Million Sharks Killed for Fins Annually, Experts Estimate". National Geographic. Retrieved 8 January 2007.
  2. ^ a b Geoffrey York (2003-08-27). "Shark Soup". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved 8 January 2007.
  3. ^ a b c d e f "Sharks". WildAid. Retrieved 6 January 2007.
  4. ^ Giam Choo Hoo (2006-12-01). "Shark's fin soup – eat without guilt" (PDF). The Straits Times. Retrieved 6 January 2007.
  5. ^ Clarke, Shelley C. (2006). "Global estimates of shark catches using trade records from commercial markets". Ecology Letters. 9 (10): 1115–1126. doi:10.1111/j.1461-0248.2006.00968.x. ISSN 1461-023X. Estimates of the total number of sharks traded annually worldwide, based on all fin positions combined, ranged from 26 to 73 million {{cite journal}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  6. ^ Clarke, Shelley C. (2006). "Global estimates of shark catches using trade records from commercial markets". Ecology Letters. 9 (10): 1115–1126. doi:10.1111/j.1461-0248.2006.00968.x. ISSN 1461-023X. Our median biomass estimate for the global shark fin trade based on all fin positions combined [...] is [...] nearly three times higher than the high FAO estimate {{cite journal}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  7. ^ "Disaster off the coast of the Cocos Islands". Shark Info. Retrieved 5 December 2007.
  8. ^ "shark conservation". Blue Sphere Media. Retrieved 5 December 2007.
  9. ^ "16 January 2007: Encountering Shark Finners inside our Marine Protected Area". Misool Eco Resort. Retrieved 5 December 2007.
  10. ^ "List of endangered sharks". The Shark Trust. Retrieved 8 January 2007.
  11. ^ Peter Gastrow (2001). "Triad Societies and Chinese Organised Crime in South Africa". Institute for Security Studies. Retrieved 8 January 2007.
  12. ^ a b Laura Marquez (2006-10-30). "Rising Demand For Fins Contributes To Decline In Shark Population, Critics Charge". ABC News. Retrieved 8 January 2007.
  13. ^ "Disney Hong Kong insists on shark's fin-soup meals". Taipei Times. 2005-05-29. Retrieved 8 January 2007.
  14. ^ "Shark Finning Banned in Eastern Pacific Ocean". Environment News Service. 2005-06-09. Retrieved 8 January 2007.
  15. ^ "Media silent on shark fin soup affair". TheStandard. 2006-09-01. Retrieved 8 January 2007. [dead link]
  16. ^ David Barboza (2006-08-13). "Waiter, There's a Celebrity in My Shark FinSoup". The New York Times. Retrieved 8January 2006. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  17. ^ "Basketball star berated for shark fin dinner". Bangkok Post. Retrieved 8 January 2007.
  18. ^ Mike Dolan (2006-09-04). "Death of the crocodile hunter". The First Post. Retrieved 8 January 2007.
  19. ^ Ken Hom (2005-06-09). "A shark's tale". The Guardian. Retrieved 8 January 2006.
  20. ^ Chester Yung and Teddy Ng (2005-06-25). "Disney ditches shark's fin". The Standard. Retrieved 8 January 2007.
  21. ^ Doug Crets and Mimi Lau (2005-11-03). "HKU bans shark fin dishes". The Standard. Retrieved 8 January 2007.
  22. ^ ChannelNewsAsia.com, Malaysian ministry bans shark's fin soup
  23. ^ Anderton, Jim (2007-04-01). "Full protection for great white sharks starts today". New Zealand Government. Retrieved 2008-08-27.
  24. ^ "Save Our Sharks". Royal Forest and Bird Protection Society of New Zealand. Retrieved 2008-08-27. [dead link]
  25. ^ "Foodies sign pledge against shark fin soup". NZPA. 2008-08-27. Retrieved 2008-08-27.
  26. ^ "Palau pioneers 'shark sanctuary'" BBC News, 25 September 2009.
  27. ^ McAvoy, Audrey (Saturday, May 29, 2010). "No more eating shark fin in Hawaii after new law". Associated Press. Retrieved May 29, 2010. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) [dead link]
  28. ^ Mahr, Krista (Tuesday, December 21, 2010). "A Happier Year in Store for America's Sharks?". Time. Retrieved Jan 5, 2011. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  29. ^ Restuccia, Andrew (Wednesday, January 05, 2011). "Obama signs two energy/environment bills into law". The Hill. Retrieved Jan 5, 2011. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)

External links

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