In Brief

NEW, BINDING MEASURES TO TARGET ILLEGAL FISHING

A UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) meeting has set the stage for the introduction of new rules targeting illegal, unreported, or unregulated fishing (IUU). Meeting in the Committee on Fisheries in Rome from 5-9 March 5, governments from 131 countries agreed to negotiate a new international agreement that will establish strict controls in ports where fish is landed.

Fishing without permission, catching endangered species, disregarding catch quotas or using outdated equipment are the most common IUU fishing offences, according to the FAO. Measure to combat such practices include checking the record of boats prior to allowing them to enter a dock, and carrying out boat inspections in order to check the documentation, equipment, and cargo. Another goal set by the committee was to improve communication between ports, so authorities can keep track of repeat offenders.

The new agreement is expected to come into force following the next meeting of the committee in 2009, with negotiations taking place over the course of 2007 and 2008.

EU Commissioner Joe Borg welcomed the launch of the negotiations, noting that "The proposals on port state control are critical to the fight against IUU, and something which the EU has been calling for since the adoption of its 2002 IUU Action Plan." Sebastian Losada of Greenpeace said "The international cooperation, measures of forced fulfillment for the control in the ports, as well as a global registry of fishing ships and a regime of sanctions adapted, are between the tools that the governments need to start up. This way, we will be able to fight fleets that are literally robbing the food of some of the poorest communities in the planet and destroying our marine ecosystems."

IUU offences burden for world fisheries not only because they deplete the resource, but also because they lead to large monetary losses -- due primarily to lost revenues from fishing, and also to expenses related to enforcement.

The Committee on Fisheries also took decisions to develop technical guidelines on best practices in deep sea fisheries, to develop guidelines on the use of marine protected areas for sustainable fisheries management and conserving marine biodiversity, and to convene an international conference focusing on the problems and needs specific to small scale fisheries in the developing world.

"Countries agree to strengthen control in ports to combat illegal fishing," FAO RELEASE, 12 March 2007; "131 Governments to set nets for illegal fishers," ENS, 12 March 2007.

EU ADOPTS CLIMATE, ENERGY GOALS

The EU Spring Summit, chaired by German Chancellor Angela Merkel, has adopted binding targets on carbon emission reductions and renewable energy. Meeting from 8-9 March, the leaders of the 27 EU member states agreed to a package based on the new energy strategy the European Commission launched in January (see Bridges Trade BioRes, 19 January 2007, http://www.ictsd.org/biores/07-01-19/story1.htm). Seeking to show global leadership in addressing climate change, the EU agreed to make a unilateral 20 percent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2020 -- although they would be willing to cut emissions by 30 percent if other countries came on board -- and took on a 20 percent binding target for renewables. Countries have not yet decided on how to share the burden of implementing the targets among themselves, and the targets are not sector specific.

"I really believe now Europe can go on leading the global community in matters of climate protection," said European Commission president Jose Emanuel Barroso. Merkel, for her part, is hoping this agreement will help build momentum for the meeting of G-8 industrialised countries to be held in June, which is set to address climate change. "We think that Europe could set an example for others to implement more attractive and better climate protection goals," she said, adding that "By this I mean, for example, the United States and developing countries India and China."

Meanwhile, the UK has become the first EU country to take on binding national targets that go beyond those agreed at the EU level. The UK is set to make a 60 percent cut to its carbon emissions by 2050.

"Europe Takes the Lead in Fighting Climate Change," DER SPIEGEL, 9 March 2007; "EU faces tough decisions on climate change and renewables," EURACTIV, 7 March 2007; "Spring European Council: tackling global climate change," EU WEBSITE, 9 March 2007; "EU Can Be Green Model for US, India, China - Merkel," REUTERS, 12 March 2007; "EU Agrees Binding Energy/Climate Goals - Merkel," REUTERS, 12 March 2007.

MARINE PROTECTION TO EXPAND IN SHIPPING HOTSPOT

The Mediterranean countries are planning to take action to protect marine mammals in the Strait of Gibraltar, one of the world's busiest shipping routes.

The Scientific Committee of the Agreement on the Conservation of Cetaceans of the Black Sea, Mediterranean Sea and contiguous Atlantic Area (ACCOBAMS) has come up with new proposals to protect whale and dolphin populations of the Strait of Gibraltar, Alboran Sea, and other areas of the Mediterranean, to be considered at the meeting of the parties in October.

The Strait of Gibraltar between Africa and Europe is a major shipping route, with some 90,000 vessels transiting the straight each year. The largest area proposed for protection includes the Alboran Sea and the Straits of Gibraltar, including national waters of Spain and Morocco, and the adjacent high seas. The area is about 25,000 square kilometers and is home to large and productive numbers of all 10 whale and dolphin species found in the Mediterranean. The proposals "aim both to protect critical marine ecosystems as well as to reduce persistent threats to the whales and dolphins and the species and habitats they depend on," said Erich Hoyt, a Senior Research Fellow at the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society, who applauded the proposals.

The Port of Gibraltar is the largest bunkering point in the Mediterranean, refueling dozens of ships a day - making marine pollution inevitable. Most recently, on 28 January, a Panamanian ship ran aground and spilled fuel over 4 kilometers of protected coastline. Six long-finned pilot whales washed up on the beaches of Spain in the last three months, a higher number than usual. Their deaths were attributed to pollution from ships.

ACCOBAMS was signed by 20 European and African countries situated around the Mediterranean and Black seas in an effort to reduce the threat to cetaceans (members of the order Cetacea- whales, dolphins, and porpoises) and increase knowledge of these animals. It came into effect in 2001.

The Spanish Navy recently strongly advised ships in the Strait of Gibraltar to slow down to avoid hitting whales. The Strait itself is the home of about 260 pilot whales and dozens of sperm whales who flock to the area to eat squid. The Strait is only 14 km wide at its narrowest point, and is the only entry and exit point between the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean.

ICTSD reporting; "Spain tells ships to avoid whales," BBC NEWS, 26 February, 2007; "Whale protections proposed for Strait of Gibraltar," ENVIRONMENT NEWS SERVICE, 5 March 2007; "Protection for whale and dolphin habitats," WHALE AND DOLPHIN CONSERVATION SOCIETY, 5 March 2007.

NGOS ACCUSE JAPAN OF PUSHING TOXICS IN BILATERAL TRADE AGREEMENTS

On 12 March, non-governmental group the Basel Action Network (BAN) issued a complaint targeting Japan with regard to bilateral trade agreements it is negotiating with developing countries. According to BAN, Japan has included provisions that would reduce tariffs on toxic waste, including pharmaceutical waste and waste oils containing PCBs, meaning the country could more easily export them to its trading partners.

BAN sent the note to the Japanese government, as well as the Executive Directors of the UN Environment Programme and the Secretariat of the Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and their Disposal saying that "For the past several years, Japan, Asia's foremost economic power, has been steadily laying the groundwork for a plan to skirt the Basel Convention and liberalise and promote toxic waste trade among their global neighbours in Asia. One of the key components of this plan includes utilisation of bilateral trade agreements."

The inclusion of toxic substances in the treaties between Japan and Singapore, the Philippines, Malaysia, and Thailand has stirred controversy, with local Thai anti-FTA activists recently protesting against what they see as waste colonialism. An official of the Thai Industrial Works Department said on 5 March that an annex would be added to the FTA to clarify that it does not contravene international law on the movement of hazardous waste.

Additional information:

BAN Non-compliance notice targeting Japan http://www.ban.org/Library/Japan_JPEPA_BNN2007_1.Final.pdf.

"Toxic backlash to Thai-Japan FTA," ASIA TIMES, 21 February 2007; "Japan Accused of Breaching Toxic Waste Trade Treaty," ENS, 14 March 2007; "Toxic waste annex to be tabled in Tokyo," BANGKOK POST, 5 March 2007.

US RICE CONTAMINATION CRISES CONTINUES

Unauthorised genetically modified material has again contaminated US rice. According to the US Department of Agriculture (USDA), seed of CL131 -- an approved GM rice variety -- contains "trace levels of genetic material not yet approved for commercialisation." The unauthorised genetic material in question is LLRICE601, developed by Bayer CropScience. The discovery of trace levels of the same material led to Japan and EU halting rice imports from US at the end of the 2006 growing season (see Bridges Trade BioRes, 8 September 2006, http://www.ictsd.org/biores/06-09-08/story1.htm). Now, the USDA is asking farmers and seed dealers to destroy the contaminated seed or planted rice.

Meanwhile, Mexico, which is the largest buyer of US rice, has halted imports at the border. Again, the reason is potential LLRICE601 contamination, with the Mexican government asking for certification that their rice imports are uncontaminated. This is the first time Mexico has taken such precautionary measures with regard to potential GM contamination.

The US exported rice to the tune of USD205 million to Mexico last year. It considers LLRICE601 safe for human consumption.

"GM rice withdrawn from US market," ALLABOUTFEED.NET, 12 March 2007; "Mexico testing US rice for GMO strain," REUTERS, 15 March 2007; "Mexico closes border to U.S. GM rice," FARM FUTURES, 16 March 2007.

MALI MEETING ADVOCATES FOOD SOVEREIGNTY

A number of civil society organisations recently convened in countryside outside Sélingué, Mali, for a World Forum on Food Sovereignty. Dubbed Nyéléni 2007, the event brought together more than 500 representatives of peasant and family farmers, fisher-folk, indigenous peoples, rural workers, migrants, pastoralists, women, youth, environmentalists, and consumers from more than 80 countries in late February. The meeting adopted a declaration, which calls for food sovereignty to be recognised as a basic human right.

The Forum defines food sovereignty as "the right of peoples to define their own food and agriculture policies, to protect and regulate domestic agricultural production and trade so as to attain their objectives of sustainable development, to determine in what measure they want to be autonomous, and to limit the dumping of products on their markets."

The Declaration of Nyéléni calls for a world where, amongst other things, food sovereignty is a basic human right, natural environments are conserved and rehabilitated, traditional knowledge is respected and maintained, and agrarian and fisheries reforms are made with concern for the environment and traditional labourers. The Declaration also makes strong statements against imperialism, neo-liberalism, and international financial institutions, dumping, domination of the food market by large corporations, genetically modified organisms and other technologies that undermine future production capacities.

The resumption of the Doha round in January means that the world's agricultural policies are up for debate (See Bridges Trade BioRes, 2 February 2007, http://www.ictsd.org/biores/07-02-02/story1.htm). Campaigners supporting the concept of food sovereignty, such as the Via Campesina, have, however, stressed that 'no deal is better than a bad deal' for small scale farmers.

A full summary of conclusions and proposed collective actions of the Forum will be elaborated in a synthesis document, yet to be released, and shared with the UN bodies, including the FAO, and other policy makers.

Additional resources:

The Nyéléni Declaration is available at http://www.nyeleni2007.org

ICTSD reporting; "Dispatch: Leaders of the 'food sovereignty' movement meet in Mali," GUERRILLA NEWS NETWORK, 25 February 2007.