Scientists have released new data showing a dramatic decrease in illegal,unreported and unregulated fishing for Patagonian and Antarctic toothfish,species commonly marketed in the United States as Chilean sea bass.
The new data was presented last week at the annual meeting of the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources in Hobart, Australia, attended by a delegation from the U.S. Departments of Commerce and State and the National Science Foundation.
Estimates show that IUU fishing within the area regulated by the commission has decreased by 75 percent, from 10,070 tons in 2003 to 2,622 tons in 2004.
The United States is one of 24 member nations to the commission and
is the world's third largest importer of toothfish. In recent years,
overfishing concerns due to the high volume of illegal toothfish harvests prompted the United States to take action, both within the commission and through domestic regulation, to reduce financial incentive for poachers.
"This welcome decline in toothfish poaching is due in large part to NOAA Fisheries' aggressive and sustained effort to ensure we keep poached toothfish out of this country," said Bill Hogarth, director of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's National Marine Fisheries Service. "The commission's catch documentation program is working to ensure long-term sustainable fisheries."
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