Catch-All Controls Aren’t likely To End Overfishing

Livemint     26th October 2021     Save    
QEP Pocket Notes

Context: Coordinated action by countries is essential to tackle common environmental threats like overfishing which has become a mortal threat to much marine life.

Issues in regulating overfishing

  • Emerging economies to bear burden disproportionately larger than their contribution to the problem.
    • Mostly industrial-scale fishing by rich nations is responsible for depletion of fisheries resources.
  • Issues in policy framing: As depletion of fish stock varies from one part of the globe to another.
    • Absence of consensus on modifying policies to curb the danger: delay in World Trade Organization’s (WTO) effort to forge a multilateral pact.
  • Subsidies to encourage fishing are estimated to range from $14 billion to $54 billion per year.
    • Cheap fuel for vessels that trawl the deep seas beyond 200 nautical miles from a shore.
  • Illegal, unreported and unregulated deep-sea fishing approximately between 20% and 50% of all deep-sea fishing.
    • High-volume mechanized operations that are responsible for most of the marine damage cannot be traced to the policies of countries like India.
     

            Way forward: A flexible approach based on principle that those who have done most harm must work hardest to salvage it.

            • India –Ideal response: India ‘s proposal for WTO
              • 25-year moratorium on deep-sea-fishing subsidies by all except the least developed countries and those with an under-1% share of the global fish haul.
              • As for territorial waters—within 12 nautical miles so long as a country can sustain its own marine life, no restriction should be placed on subsidies.
              • India could soften its position on deep-sea waivers, but on coastal-zone fishing.
            • Separating subsidies that aid fishing in one zone from another through WTO framework for sake of a better-balanced and more reachable agreement.
            • Appreciation of local complexities when it comes to meeting global goals in High table talks.
              • Fisher folk of modest means must not find themselves at the raw end of an international bargain aimed at reducing ecological risks as they played no part in raising.
                  QEP Pocket Notes