69 nations to protect fish

2008-09-05 21:05

Rome - Sixty-nine countries have adopted guidelines aimed at protecting deep-sea fish species and habitats outside national waters that are at risk from overfishing, a UN body said on Wednesday.

Countries should be able to use the guidelines when their fishing fleets operate "in high-seas areas outside of national jurisdictions, where many deep sea fisheries are located," the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) said.

According to the FAO, the guidelines, which follow two years of preparation and negotiations, were needed in part because many deep-water fish species grow slowly, reach sexual maturity late and may not always reproduce every year.

"As a result, they have low resilience to intensive fishing, and recovery from overfishing can take generations," it said in a statement.

Fisheries management in international waters has been difficult since it requires co-operation from various nations, the FAO said.

"Until now, there really hasn't been an international framework for tackling this issue," it said.

Vulnerable ecosystems

Even in national waters, few countries have addressed deep-water fishing management since it is a relatively new activity and requires considerable investment and technology, according to the FAO.

The FAO called deep-sea areas fishing's "last frontier".

Guidelines include recommending that countries assess deep-sea fishing being carried out by their fleets to determine the impact.

If vulnerable ecosystems are being harmed, deep-sea fishing should cease under the guidelines, which also recommend use of fishing methods that reduce the impact on species that are not being targeted.

They also outline steps for improving information on the location and status of vulnerable ecosystems, the FAO said.

The FAO said it invited all its 191 members to participate in the technical consultations and 69 attended.

- AFP