Video News Release
Threatened Fisheries Within the Global 200 Marine Ecoregions









WWF presents its Video News Release entitled "WWF Pirate Fishing" in RealVideo (streaming video) format. Please choose the connection speed below that is best for you:

28.8 connection speed

ISDN connection speed


In addition, WWF presents the transcript of the Video News Release below for those users who prefer not to download the video file:

Long Version | Short Version | B-Roll Footage

Title: WWF Pirate Fishing VNR
Embargo: 9th September 1998

NEWS-IN-BRIEF

The Patagonian Toothfish has become the latest victim of international illegal pirate fishing in the waters of the Southern Ocean, according to a new report by the international conservation organisation, WWF.

LONG VERSION

Far out at sea in the Southern Ocean near Antarctica, the Australian Navy circles overhead, in their sights a pirate fishing boat. The name and the licence number are blacked out - this boat doesn't want to be caught poaching Patagonian Toothfish within Australian waters.

In a report released today, the international conservation organisation, WWF, warns that unchecked distant-water fishing fleets are threatening world fisheries. The latest example of this is pirate fishing for the Patagonian toothfish.

Michael Sutton is the Director of WWF's Endangered Seas Campaign.

I/V Michael Sutton, Director, WWF's Endangered Seas Campaign

"WWF is increasingly concerned about the pressure being applied to new species offish that the fishing industry has only recently discovered such as the Patagonian Toothfish. This is an animal that lives in deep water in remote places like the Southern ocean around Antarctica very heavily impacted by illegal pirate fishing. Ten times the amount of fish come out of the water illegally as the legal fishery accounts for. We're concerned that this animal may go commercially extinct before we even know what's going on down there."

An extremely slow-growing species, the Patagonian Toothfish can live more than 50 years and reach two meters in length - though most of the fish now being caught are not even half that size. Its delicate white flesh is especially prized in Europe and the United States where it is known as Chilean Sea Bass and in Japan where it's called Mero.

In the harbour at Albany, from one of the only two boats licenced by the Australian government, fish caught by the legitimate industry are brought on shore after weeks out at sea.

Toothfish once commanded prices as high as 7,000 US dollars a ton, but with pirate fishers taking 10 times the legal catch, prices have slumped to less than half their previous levels, undermining the legal market.

Murray France, Chief Executive Officer of Kailis and France Foods, which runs the legitimate industry out of Perth, believes that known cases of pirate fishing are just the tip of the iceberg.

I/V Murray France, CEO of Kailis and France Foods PTY

"Our company's been fishing for Toothfish in sub-Antarctic waters since 1994. 1997 was our first year at Heard Island, we encountered 13 or 14 different foreign longliners working within the Australian fishing zone, naturally without licences, not following any of the environmental procedures that we require. It concerned us greatly. "

In these mountainous seas surrounding Heard Island, 4,500 kilometres South West of Australia, a pirate vessel is at work, illegally fishing in Australian waters. Its operations are financed by a Norwegian bank. The bank knows the annual catch can amount to upwards of 1000 tons and may be worth as much as 3 million US dollars.

Helicopter surveillance teams of the Australian Navy, operating around the clock from the frigate HMAS Anzac, have pinpointed the location of the pirates and checked their legal status. Shortly after, the Navy teams move to arrest the crew and seize the vessel. It will be escorted to Australia, where both it and its crew will be handed over to the authorities.

WWF is concerned that many coastal nations such as Australia, with its 36,000 kilometers of coastline, are unable to adequately monitor their fisheries and enforce their regulations.

Tom Morris is an Australian Fisheries Enforcement Officer

I/V Tom Morris, Australian Fishing Zone Enforcement Officer

"With illegal fishing vessels from all over the world coming into our waters, vessels such as this behind us, we do have a problem. We have to certainly increase our surveillance activities to make sure that we try and curtail the activities of these vessels coming in. "

WWF believes that unless governments and regional fishery organizations take swift action to curb unlawful overfishing by distant-water fleets, species like the Patagonian toothfish will soon join the growing ranks of the world's most threatened animals.

ENDS

SHORT VERSION

Far out at sea in the Southern Ocean near Antarctica, the Australian Navy circles overhead, in their sights a pirate fishing boat. The name and the licence number are blacked out - this boat doesn't want to be caught poaching Patagonian Toothfish within Australian waters.

In a report released today, the international conservation organisation, WWF, warns that unchecked distant-water fishing fleets are threatening world fisheries. The latest example of this is pirate fishing for the Patagonian toothfish.

Michael Sutton is the Director of WWF's Endangered Seas Campaign.

I/V Michael Sutton, Director, WWF's Endangered Seas Campaign

"WWF is increasingly concerned about the pressure being applied to new species offish that the fishing industry has only recently discovered such as the Patagonian Toothfish. This is an animal that lives in deep water in remote places like the Southern ocean around Antarctica very heavily impacted by illegal pirate fishing. Ten times the amount of fish come out of the water illegally as the legal fishery accounts for. We're concerned that this animal may go commercially extinct before we even know what's going on down there."

Toothfish once commanded prices as high as 7,000 US dollars a ton, but with pirate fishers taking 10 times the legal catch, prices have slumped to less than half their previous levels, undermining the legal market.

Murray France, Chief Executive Officer of Kailis and France Foods, which runs the legitimate industry out of Perth, believes that known cases of pirate fishing are just the tip of the iceberg.

I/V Murray France, CEO of Kailis and France Foods PTY

"Our company's been fishing for Toothfish in sub-Antarctic waters since 1994. 1997 was our first year at Heard Island, we encountered 13 or 14 different foreign longliners working within the Australian fishing zone, naturally without licences, not following any of the environmental procedures that we require. It concerned us greatly.

In these mountainous seas surrounding Heard Island, 4,500 kilometres South West of Australia, a pirate vessel is at work, illegally fishing in Australian waters. It's operations are financed by a Norwegian bank. The bank knows the annual catch can amount to upwards of 1000 tons and may be worth as much as 3 million US dollars.

WWF believes that unless governments and regional fishery organizations take swift action to curb unlawful overfishing by distant water fleets, species like the Patagonian toothfish will soon join the growing ranks of the world's most threatened animals.

ENDS

B ROLL

1. Graphic (Duration: 30 secs)

2. Interview: Mike Sutton, Director, WVVF's Endangered Seas Campaign (Duration: 30 secs) ENGLISH LANGUAGE

"First of all, we have to stop subsidising over-fishing on the high seas. Many of these distant-water vessels are poaching Patagonian Toothfish and other species, are heavily subsidised by governments. We've got to put an end to that. Secondly, there's a new treaty, formulated by the UN, on high seas fishing. It hasn't entered into force yet because not enough governments have ratified it. We've got to get that treaty into force. It'll help put a stop to the kind of poaching that's going on in the Southern Ocean. "

3. Interview: Trish Stone, Manager, Antarctic Fisheries, Australian Fisheries Management Authority (Duration: 51 secs) ENGLISH LANGUAGE

"The Australian Fisheries Management Authority is the government agency responsible for overseeing fishing in the entire Australian fishing zone, including in the sub-Antarctic islands, where the Patagonian Toothfish is taken. One of the principle roles is to make sure that fishing is undertaken in accordance with the principles of ecologically sustainable development and does not adversely impact upon the environment and related species. So, it's our job to work cooperatively with the fishing industry to ensure that the Australian fishing industry's practices are sustainable. Also important to us is the fact that there are illegal fishing operations taking place there and it's important for us to address those illegal fishing operations to make sure that they're not having adverse impacts on the fish stocks and the environment of those important World Heritage listed areas. "

4. Interview: Tom Morris, Australian Fishing Zone Enforcement Officer (Duration: 19 sees) ENGLISH LANGUAGE

"The Navy and fisheries have had some notable successes in apprehending foreign fishing vessels such as this. We will have to continue to monitor the activities of all foreign fishing vessels and stop them from entering our waters and indiscriminately taking fish that rightfully belongs to us. "

5. Interview: Theo Kailis, CEO of Kailis and France Foods PTY (Duration: 53 sees) ENGLISH LANGUAGE

"Australia's got a responsibility to protect areas that are under their control - what we call their own sovereign countries - and unless they do something about the illegal operators that move into the area that not only pollute the environment, not only do they take any sort offish that they can catch illegally, not only do they kill birds - seals we understand - and at times they actually land on the islands themselves, and that, possibly, they could be spreading disease. The action that's been taken to date has certainly slowed up their activities, but our concern is that unless there's something permanently done in the area, they'll create a situation which is not correctable. "

6. Patagonian Toothfish fishing by the legitimate industry (Duration: 1 min 18 sees)

7. Unloading of Patagonian Toothfish in Albany, Western Australia (Duration: 52 sees)

8. Processing Patagonian Toothfish, Albany, Western Australia (Duration: 1 min 15 sees)

9. Establishing shots of Perth, Central Law Courts, Perth, Pirate Fishing boat, Fremantle. (Duration: 1 min 18 secs)

10. Restaurant, Perth, Western Australia (Duration: 1 min 9 secs)

11. Royal Australian Navy, Stirling, Western Australia (Duration 1 min 22secs)


toolbar