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Journalism of Courage
Salt-codfish cakes with tapenade and fried oregano may be one of the healthier items on the lunch menu at the United Nations delegates8217; dining room in New York. But it8217;s also one of the more controversial. The cod, along with tuna, swordfish and other dinner-table favourites, has soared to the top of the UN agenda.
A recent World Wildlife Fund report says that if stocks continue to decline at the current rate, cod will be extinct in the Atlantic Ocean in less than 15 years. Last week the European Commission delivered a report to the UN General Assembly calling for an end to 8220;bottom gear8221; fishing8212;which employs towed dredges and netting8212;and requiring states to identify and map vulnerable marine habitats so they can be preserved.
Some environmentalists have applauded the initiative, but critics say the plan won8217;t work. For one thing, by the time a resolution is debated and passed and enforcement begins, the fish stocks may already be too far gone. And even if the United Nations could act more quickly, enforcement is always difficult on the high seas. Countries like Mongolia and some Central American nations, seen as more lax in their licensing of fishing vessels, will have to be persuaded to tighten their controls.
Still, even if stricter regulations prove tough to enforce, creating stronger regional organisations is a step in the right direction, says Mireille Thom, spokeswoman for the EC8217;s fisheries directorate. More UN regulation of the oceans 8220;is not the perfect solution,8221; says Thom, 8220;but it is the most realistic solution, and one that is the most likely to bear fruit.8221; The frutti di mare can only hope that it8217;s not too little, too late.
8212;Newsweek / GINANNE BROWNELL
