55 



Fisheries Subcommittee -4- October 20, 1993 



mortality to recent levels with these increases in catch and effort; 



•- The 1992 ICCAT Infractions Committee Report provides ample 

 evidence that eastern Atlantic and Mediterranean fishing countries 

 do not abide by the 1975 Atlantic wide minimum size of 14 lbs. 

 Scientists now know that at least 3 million bluefin tuna under the 

 minimum size are captured to support domestic cannery markets ( it 

 is interesting to note that all western fisheries for all sizes of 

 bluefin have now been reduced by national regulations to catching 

 about only 20,000 fish total); 



~ Eastern Atlantic and Mediterranean countries continue to target 

 spawning bluefin for the roe to support a luxury product market. 

 This practice is reprehensible and an insult to western Atlantic 

 fishermen given the extent of the conservation program here. 



Mr. Chairman, it is our view that the totally unregulated and booming 

 bluefin fisheries of the east (from the starting depressed condition of the 

 early 1970's) can only be occurring and sustained as a result of the 

 dramatic sacrifices of fishermen in the western Atlantic fishing grounds. 

 In light of the stark contrast of the western fisheries being under 

 exceptionally restrictive management and the eastern fisheries yet to 

 feel the economic sting of basic conservation measures such as minimum 

 size and quotas -- fishermen find the Miami position calling for another 

 50% reduction in our quota for the next ten years to be incomprehensible. 



Under the Miami plan, the U.S. share of the total Atlantic catch will be 

 reduced immediately to less than 1 1/2% and this figure will shrink 

 as the eastern fisheries continues to prosper at our expense. It is 

 important to recall the arbitrary justification for the original stock 

 separation and imaginary stock dividing line first proposed by Bill Fox. 

 The division of the Atlantic into east and west for stock assessment was 

 by Parrack (under instructions by Bill Fox) in 1980 who noted: 



'A separate analysis was required assuming a completely isolated West Atlantic 

 population so that it was necessary to compile the catch under that assumption. Since 

 longline catcti per efton show a continuous distribution of fish across the Atlantic and 

 mark-recapture data document frequent transatlantic movement (Brunenmeister 

 1979). the Identification of catches from the hypothesized western stock was not 

 obvious. Therefore, in order to define catches from a separate stock for analysis 

 purposes, a geographical separation line approximately equidistant from eastern and 



