From subsistence fishing to commercial fishery harvest, the seas have fueled our bodies and our economy. By managing fish stocks well, we can ensure long-term, sustainable livelihoods now and for future generations, and keep jobs in fishing communities. Though the world faces many challenges to achieving sustainable fisheries and avoiding fish species collapse globally, the United States now leads the world in effective fisheries management. Today, many stocks that were historically overfished in our nation are rebuilt or actively rebuilding including summer flounder, scallops, North Atlantic swordfish, and sablefish.
The U.S. is the third largest seafood consumer in the world – commercial and recreational fisheries combined contribute $163 billion in sales impacts to total consumer spending annually and create an estimated 1.9 million jobs.
The U.S. demonstrates strong leadership in fisheries management both nationally and internationally. The 1996 Sustainable Fisheries Act directed the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) to end overfishing, rebuild depleted stocks, protect important fish habitat, and minimize bycatch and discards. This was furthered under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (MSA) and its recent reauthorization in 2006. The new requirements under the MSA are to end overfishing in federal waters by 2011 for all federally managed fish stocks, improve fisheries management and data collection, and expand the use of ecosystem-based approaches to management.
H.R. 594, the Coastal Jobs Creation Act of 2011, which was introduced by Congressman Frank Pallone (D-NJ) recognizes that we must do everything we can to protect both coastal resources and the jobs that rely on them. By building on successful programs, this bill will fund projects to conduct cooperative research, collect socio-economic data, and revitalize working waterfronts, all of which are specifically targeted at aiding coastal communities and creating jobs.
International Fisheries
Internationally, the U.S. is a member of ten multilateral regional fisheries management organizations (RFMOs), in addition to numerous global and bilateral agreements. RFMOs are affiliations of nations which coordinate fisheries management in a particular region. They are responsible for managing fish stocks on the high seas or stocks that migrate through the waters of more than one nation.
Despite these national and international efforts, the United Nations (UN) Food and Agriculture Organization reported that as of 2008, 85 percent of global marine fish stocks are either fully exploited (53 percent of stocks), overexploited (28 percent), depleted (3 percent), or recovering from depletion (1 percent), driven in part by non-compliance of parties to RFMOs and to the persistence of illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (UN) notes that although the exact extent of IUU fishing is not known, it is estimated that for some important fisheries IUU fishing accounts for about 30% of the total catch. The UN General Assembly expressed in a 2010 Resolution its "serious concern that illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing remains one of the greatest threats to marine ecosystems and continues to have serious and major implications for the conservation and management of ocean resources."
IUU fishing is an umbrella term for several damaging fishing behaviors. Illegal fishing takes place when vessels operate in violation of the laws of a fishery, such as those under the jurisdiction of a coastal state or those regulated by RFMOs. Unreported fishing is fishing that is not reported or is misreported when such reporting is required by the relevant national authority or RFMO. Unregulated fishing refers to fishing by vessels without nationality or vessels flying the flag of a country not party to the relevant RFMO.
With an annual global value of $10 to $23.5 billion, representing between 11 and 26 million tonnes, IUU fishing undermines the U.S.\'s conservation focused approach to fisheries management and its fishermen. {C}{C}{C}Unsustainable fishing practices by foreign fishing fleets adversely affect stocks that migrate between the U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone (which extends out 200 nautical miles from the coastline) and the high seas outside the Exclusive Economic Zone. If stocks fail to recover, additional restrictions may be placed on U.S. fishermen, forcing economic losses and undermining confidence in the fairness of the management system. In this sense, IUU fishers are "free riders" who benefit unfairly from the sacrifices made by others for the sake of proper fisheries conservation and management. The growing problem of IUU fishing can significantly diminish the benefits of domestic fisheries management efforts. Illegal fishing can become an international security issue: After Somalia\'s government collapsed and there were no patrols along the shoreline, the country\'s tuna-rich waters were soon plundered by commercial fishing fleets from around the world. Many Somali fishermen turned to piracy.
H.R. 1080, the Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated Fishing Enforcement Act of 2009, passed the House in the 111th Congress. It would have strengthened and improved the enforcement authorities of various U.S. fisheries acts and would have authorized a cooperation and assistance program to help other countries develop the technical expertise to confront IUU fishing.
