Finning in European Waters

[sexydivebuddy]

Originally Posted by shark_safari_rob

Shark finning is illegal - anywhere in the world - and if anyone hears of practices such as this in UK waters then the Shark Trust should be notified - they will follow up the report with the authorities.

shark trust, shark conservation, great white shark, adopt a shark

let's name and shame anyone involved in these barbaric and cruel practices

Rob

rob,
can you please explain that as this cruel and unnecessary practice is being carried out world-wide and is illegal, surely the respective port / fisheries authorities must know about it as the catches have to landed and marketed somewhere.
what are the governments of the nations involved doing to enforce action against this illegal practice ?

[shark_safari_rob]

Originally Posted by sexydivebuddy

rob,
can you please explain that as this cruel and unnecessary practice is being carried out world-wide and is illegal, surely the respective port / fisheries authorities must know about it as the catches have to landed and marketed somewhere.
what are the governments of the nations involved doing to enforce action against this illegal practice ?

I guess that, as with everything, it comes down to money, self-interest and ulterior motives. Some nations are showing excellent commitment to policing their waters (Australia, in particular), others don't even seem to know about the international law - which basically means that a whole shark carcass must be landed for the equivalent number of fins on board. Of course, there are so many Asian fleet boats out in international waters still carrying out finning practices that any caught by patrol boats will be just a ... err ... drop in the ocean.

Only an international ban on trading in shark fins - a la ivory - and/or a cultural shift away from shark-fin soup will do anything to help the matter - and I don't see that happening any time soon.

And at 100 MILLION sharks being fished out of the sea per year, the breeding populations may be unsustainably depleted long before these changes are achieved - it's all so very sad.

Personally, I subscribe the the Sea Shepherd's approach to dealing with this matter - but it's a bit too aggressive and unpalatable for many people!!

cheers
Rob

[sexydivebuddy]

rob, sorry to be a nuisance on your time, but can you explain that if finning is illegal world-wide, how can there still be international trading ? surely then there are some nations that trade in illegally obtained commodities, thus making trading itself illegal. therefore, how can a ban be legally imposed on an already illegal practice ?
am i making sense here ?
and yes, i worry about the sustainabilty issues too .... not only about sharks but a lot of animals.
we were the last to arrive here and we are doing a good job of making sure we leave our legacy.

[shark_safari_rob]

Originally Posted by sexydivebuddy

rob, sorry to be a nuisance on your time, but can you explain that if finning is illegal world-wide, how can there still be international trading ? surely then there are some nations that trade in illegally obtained commodities, thus making trading itself illegal. therefore, how can a ban be legally imposed on an already illegal practice ?
am i making sense here ?
and yes, i worry about the sustainabilty issues too .... not only about sharks but a lot of animals.
we were the last to arrive here and we are doing a good job of making sure we leave our legacy.

The problem is that it's not the selling or use of the commodity themselves (i.e. the fins) that is illegal, just the practice of finning to get them. Once they are on the Chinese market stall, who can say how they were actually obtained - legally or illegally?

That's why the finners themselves have to be caught in the act - which requires time, effort, resources and commitment - which some governments provide (in their own national waters) and many don't.

I hope that makes it a bit clearer!

cheers
Rob

[shark_safari_rob]

Originally Posted by sexydivebuddy

rob, sorry to be a nuisance on your time, but can you explain that if finning is illegal world-wide, how can there still be international trading ? surely then there are some nations that trade in illegally obtained commodities, thus making trading itself illegal. therefore, how can a ban be legally imposed on an already illegal practice ?
am i making sense here ?
and yes, i worry about the sustainabilty issues too .... not only about sharks but a lot of animals.
we were the last to arrive here and we are doing a good job of making sure we leave our legacy.

by the way, it's no problem - you've got me on my favourite soapbox!!!

cheers
Rob

[sexydivebuddy]

therefore, when those nations that signed up to the act of making finning illegal ..... they either did not spot this loophole or chose to ignore the obvious follow-on effects, for dubious reasons.
i'm surprised the WWF and recognised agencies like them, also did not spot this loophole as there have been several past examples of such.
it was mentioned that cornish fishermen were involved in finning porbeagles .... out of interest, how was this handled by our authorities and the sharks trust ?

[shark_safari_rob]

Originally Posted by sexydivebuddy

therefore, when those nations that signed up to the act of making finning illegal ..... they either did not spot this loophole or chose to ignore the obvious follow-on effects, for dubious reasons.
i'm surprised the WWF and recognised agencies like them, also did not spot this loophole as there have been several past examples of such.
it was mentioned that cornish fishermen were involved in finning porbeagles .... out of interest, how was this handled by our authorities and the sharks trust ?

I've not heard about that - I doubt they were actually finning in Cornish waters, but perhaps just providing sharks for shark fin soup on local restaurant menus - which is bad enough!!

[resting rifleman]

Originally Posted by sexydivebuddy

therefore, when those nations that signed up to the act of making finning illegal ..... they either did not spot this loophole or chose to ignore the obvious follow-on effects, for dubious reasons.
i'm surprised the WWF and recognised agencies like them, also did not spot this loophole as there have been several past examples of such.
it was mentioned that cornish fishermen were involved in finning porbeagles .... out of interest, how was this handled by our authorities and the sharks trust ?

the porbeagles referred to here ^ are presumably those mentioned in fiona's post above, if you follow the link in that post (#5) you will see that these sharks were not "finned" but were caught, and sold whole for food!
it is preposterous to think that a british fisherman would throw away hundredweights of perfectly good food that he can sell for (at that time) £2.10p a kilo, to the french and spanish markets, and just sell the fins to the chinky on the high street! give it a bit of thought eh! it dont really gell with the percieved attitude of fishermen (greedy, souless, unscrupulous, mercenary, nasty, barstewards!) does it?

[David A]

And so it goes on. as I write in the early hours of the 19th May, some 3 million sharks have died at our hands. Not this year, but since this thread was posted 11 days ago.
Thirty years ago, the sea of cortez in Mexico was so full of large pelagics, people wondered how the water managed to keep all the sharks in it, there seemed to be too many to fit. It is now a desert. 150,000 long-line hooks per night seem to have done their job.
Act now people, these animals will disappear in your lifetime, and when the apex predators go, everything else is sure to follow.

David