FEDERATION OF WESTERN OUTDOOR CLUBS

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STOP KILLING DOLPHINS IN TUNA FISHERY PURSE-SEINE NETS

Over the last forty years more than seven million dolphins have been killed incidentally in purse-seine nets used in the Eastern Tropical Pacific (ETP) to catch tuna.  After some changes in fishing techniques, as well as increased tuna fishing outside the ETP in areas of the Pacific where tuna do not travel in concert with dolphins, the numbers of dolphins killed each year dropped from hundreds of thousands to the thousands. It is not right that any dolphins should be killed in the purse-seine fishery.  The U.S. purse-seine tuna fishery has moved to the western Pacific, Mexico, Columbia and Venezuela are the primary dolphin-deadly fishers.

Present dolphin-safe laws prevent the sale or import into the U.S. of tuna which were caught by chasing, encircling, and killing dolphins.  Cans of dolphin-safe tuna sold in the U.S. carry a dolphin-safe label.  The Bush Administration sought to weaken this dolphin-safe label by broadening the definition of "dolphin safe" to include tuna caught by fishing methods that include chasing and encircling dolphins.

U.S. government scientists completed a report in the summer of 2002 based on a study of the status of target dolphin populations.  It concluded that those dolphin populations are not increasing.  The report was mandated by the U.S. Congress.

At the end of 2002, the Secretary of Commerce issued his finding of "no significant adverse impact" on dolphin populations.  This finding would permit the Commerce Department to weaken the dolphin-safe label by broadening the definition of "dolphin safe" to include tuna caught by fishing methods which include chasing and encircling dolphins.

Several conservation organizations immediately filed a lawsuit against the Secretary of Commerce.  In April, the judge issued a preliminary injunction pending a court proceeding to decide the issue.  The final hearing is expected in January 2004.

The Federation of Western Outdoor Clubs supports the current dolphin-safe label on canned tuna sold in the U.S. Further, the FWOC recommends that if the court case is not concluded in the dolphins' favor, that the U.S. Congress take steps to mandate the retention of the current dolphin-safe law and not allow it to be weakened in any way.


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