fishing. I am not going to go into that as the analyzed 

 data and results are well known. In any event it was 

 decided to hold a meeting in Rio de Janeiro in 1966 to 

 consider the formation of a conservation organization 

 to be concerned with research and management of the 

 tunas and tuna-like fishes of the Atlantic Ocean. I was 

 fortunate enough to be an advisory member of the 

 U.S. delegation, together with a representative of the 

 Bureau of Sport Fisheries and Wildlife (the late 

 Albert Swartz). 



Preceding the Rio conference, a series of meetings 

 was held with representatives of sport fishing interests 

 nationwide, at which we tried to determine the course 

 of action we might possibly pursue in Rio. We decided 

 there were several things we ought to do. First, and 

 most important, we sought to have a separate meeting 

 with representatives of the Japanese delegation, par- 

 ticularly the private individuals representing the 

 commercial fishing industry. We sought four objec- 

 tives: 1) recognition that there was a significant 

 problem of mutual concern due to the longlining ac- 

 tivity; 2) agreement that the longliners should remain 

 a sufficient distance from billfish sport fishing centers 

 to preclude direct conflict; 3) an agreement that even- 

 tually there would be convened an international 

 scientific conference on billfish biology; and 4) 

 management following not less than a decade for 

 research. 



The Rio conference resulted in the establishment of 

 the International Commission for the Conservation of 

 Atlantic Tunas and this also embraced responsibility 

 for research and management of billfishes. The con- 

 ference also provided the hoped-for opportunity to 

 talk with Japanese commercial fisheries interests. As 

 a result the objectives that I have outlined were sub- 

 stantially agreed to and, in return, the U.S. sport 

 fisheries representatives agreed to promote cessation 

 of destruction of Japanese longline gear. 



Following the conference, we came back here and 

 held a series of meetings across the United States with 

 representatives of sport fishing groups promoting this 

 latter part of the agreement. Obviously, if you are go- 

 ing to get something you have to give something in 

 return and it seemed to us that this was a very 

 reasonable arrangement. Until recently, aside from a 

 few temporary minor relapses, matters seem to have 

 worked out well since conclusion of the agreement at 

 Rio. Several incidents have occurred, though, which 

 underscore the usefulness of the agreement. In the 

 spring of 1967 for example, my organization formally 

 requested that the Japanese overseas trawlers associa- 

 tion revise previously announced plans for exploratory 

 trawling along the east coast of the United States. As 

 a result of several exchanges of correspondence, these 

 plans were substantially altered so as to operate in 

 waters north of the Miami-West Palm Beach area in 

 Florida, and offshore, well beyond the range of the 1- 

 day charter trips out of the more important angling 

 ports along the Atlantic Coast from Florida to East- 



port, Maine. Last year several Japanese longliners 

 commenced fishing in the Gulf of Mexico, and are 

 continuing to do so this year, and have come into con- 

 flict with the long range, private charter sport fishing 

 craft characteristic of that area. There was a flurry of 

 excitement over an alleged mass harvest of billfishes 

 based on shark fins, hung to dry in the superstructure 

 of a Japanese ship being misidentified as marlin 

 tails. I had it on the best of authority from NMFS peo- 

 ple that these were indeed shark fins. This point was 

 cleared up, but the longliners remained sufficiently 

 close inshore to come into occasional contact. I un- 

 derstand that some of them have drifted even beyond 

 the legal limit in the past few days, perhaps accident- 

 ally. Based on documented data provided by the 

 Coast Guard on request, and also through the help of 

 NMFS, we relayed this information to our Japanese 

 contacts and suggested that they have a special 

 problem in the Gulf of Mexico. We urged that they in- 

 struct their fishermen, if they intended to continue 

 implementing our unofficial agreement, to move 

 farther back offshore. As yet, nothing has been done 

 but we have some information which suggests such in- 

 structions will be forthcoming. 



It seems to me that it is highly desirable that "en- 

 vironmentally concerned" sport fishermen refrain 

 from the destruction of Japanese longline gear. I can- 

 not emphasize too strongly that if there is to be any 

 kind of a quick settlement to the benefit of American 

 sport fishermen, then we have to hold up our end of 

 the bargain. If it turns out that the Japanese have 

 decided to abrogate the agreement, then we will have 

 to see what other measures may be taken. I am not 

 convinced yet that the agreement is without viability 

 at this time and I believe that we should do everything 

 we can to show we are holding up our end of the 

 bargain. 



I want to put in a special plea in terms of the official 

 role I am supposed to fill here. As far as sportsmen are 

 concerned, I think one of the things you must do, if we 

 are going to find out enough about billfishes to even- 

 tually hold out hope for a bilateral treaty conference 

 with the Japanese and to work out an international 

 rational management plan for these fishes, is to 

 provide money for this research. I do not necessarily 

 mean directly, but at least indirectly, through support 

 of appropriations to the agencies who are doing work. 

 Obviously this is very expensive research, and you 

 have had examples of it here. For example, if we are 

 going to build saltwater study lakes to support adult 

 black marlin as we have heard suggested, I can see 

 that it is going to be fantastically expensive! Even 

 when we are talking about $120 tags, that also is pret- 

 ty expensive. I think there is going to be a great effort 

 made on the part of the Federal Government (NMFS) 

 to show they are spending an awful lot of money right 

 now on billfish research. They are going to take all the 

 different pieces from existing programs with commer- 

 cial fisheries activities and say "this is what we are 



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