FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Erin Grandstaff and Kati Rutherford, +1 202-449-8368
erin@vennsq.com, kati@vennsq.com

Experts Meet to Help Nations
Fairly Allocate Rights to Fish for Tuna

CORDOBA, SPAIN – 6 September 2011 – Experts from around the world are in Spain this week to further develop the framework for nations to fairly allocate rights to fish for tuna, which swim through national and international waters. Defining a system to allocate rights to fish could prevent overfishing at a time when the current capacity to catch tuna is unsustainable if fully utilized.

“Fair and equitable allocation is at the top of nearly every NGOs to-do list for tuna and it requires we help nations take the next steps,” said Susan Jackson, President of the International Seafood Sustainability Foundation (ISSF). “It’s important that a representative group of stakeholders and scholars build the framework. Engaging the world’s expert thinkers can move this issue forward so that one day nations can bring fishing capacity in line with catch levels that are sustainable.”

The Cordoba Conference on the Allocation of Property Rights in Global Tuna Fisheries, hosted by ISSF, brings together negotiators, scholars, regional fisheries management organization (RFMO) representatives, industry, environmental groups and other international institutions. The goal is for participants to identify rights that could be allocated and the procedures for the stakeholders to use in negotiating fair and efficient allocation of those rights. No matter who has the right to fish, any allocation will require effective monitoring, control and surveillance, as well as increased enforcement of compliance.

Controlling and reducing fishing capacity is an area of focus in ISSF’s Strategic Plan. A report will be published following the Cordoba Conference.

About the Conference Chairs

Robin Allen was Director of the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission (IATTC) from 1999 – 2007 and currently serves as the Executive Secretary of the Interim Secretariat for the South Pacific Regional Fisheries Management Organization.

Theodore Groves is the Director of the Center for Environmental Economics in the Department of Economics at UCSD and is involved in ongoing research on international and national fisheries, water pricing and numerous projects for managing marine resources and the protection of endangered species.

He is an elected Fellow of the Econometric Society and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

About the International Seafood Sustainability Foundation (ISSF)
The International Seafood Sustainability Foundation (ISSF) is a global coalition of scientists, the tuna industry and World Wildlife Fund (WWF), the world’s leading conservation organization, promoting science-based initiatives for the long-term conservation and sustainable use of tuna stocks, reducing bycatch and promoting ecosystem health. To learn more, visit our website at iss-foundation.org.

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