(28/09/06) Europese Groenen in de bres voor haaien

• 2006-09-27

Het EP dreigde een resolutie goed te keuren die ertoe zou bijdragen dat meer haaien om hun vinnen konden worden gevangen. De praktijk is volstrekt af te keuren. Veel haaien worden gevangen, worden van hun vinnen ontdaan en daarna - soms nog levend - gewoon in het water teruggegooid.

De praktijk: er bestaat een Europese regelgeving die stelt dat haaienvissers niet alleen de vinnen hoeven bij te houden op hun schip, maar ook de karkassen van de haaien. De regelgeving kwam tot stand om te voorkomen dat al te veel dieren - eens ontdaan van hun vinnen - gewoonweg terug in zee zouden worden gedumpt. De bestaande regel bevat nu een verhouding van 5% vinnen op 95% 'haai'. De verhouding geldt voor de levende dieren (dus voor ze verwerkt zijn). Voor iedere 5 kg. vinnen moet er op het schip 95 kilo haai liggen. De visser wordt m.a.w. in zijn ruimte op het schip beperkt.

Het was de Europese Groene fractie een doorn in het oog dat de EP-commissie Visserij een verhoging voorzag tot 6,5% van deze verhouding. In realiteit zou dit betekenen dat er op de schepen minder kilo's gewoon haaienvlees zouden moeten liggen in vergelijking met het percentage haaienvinnen. Dit zou ertoe geleid hebben dat meer dieren, ontdaan van hun vinnen, zomaar in het water werden teruggegooid zonder zelfs maar te worden verwerkt door de visindustrie.

Klopt die redenering dan nog wel? Ja, want het gewicht van de vinnen wordt geteld, niet de aantallen. Het is een pragmatische oplossing: van sommige soorten zijn niet alle vinnen bruikbaar voor consumptie, soms hebben haaien beschadigde vinnen, ...

De Europese Groene fractie - die liever een totaalverbod op de vangst van haaien voor hun vinnen zou zien - haalde een kleine slag thuis met een amendement dat het percentage tot 2% verlaagt, toegepast op levend gewicht (nu is dat nog 5%).

Het EP hoopt nu dat ook de Commissie zal volgen.

De bestaande wetgeving

De door het parlement aangenomen tekst

Persmededeling van 27 september VOOR de stemming

Fisheries conservation
EP must not vote to expand the slaughter of sharks for Asian soup bowls

In advance of the European Parliament debate today and vote tomorrow on the report on shark finning, Spanish Green MEP David Hammerstein said:

"Shark finning is a brutal and repulsive practise in which certain parts of the EU fishing industry are engaged and it is disgraceful that the European Parliament is proposing to expand the loophole that allows it to continue. However this is exactly what the report approved by the Fisheries Committee is proposing by increasing the permissible proportion of shark fin to body weight from 5% to 6.5% (1).

"The practise of finning involves hauling the animals on board, cutting off their fins and discarding the bodies, often still alive. The EU regulation is intended to prevent shark bodies from being discarded in order to discourage finning (2). We cannot agree to the rapporteur's proposal, which could expand the slaughter of sharks in the EU to fill Asian soup bowls.

"I call on the Parliament to support the Green amendment, which would reduce the number of sharks that can be discarded after they have been finned. Apart from the brutality of finning, we need to also recognise that sharks are particularly vulnerable to over-fishing: most grow and reproduce at a very slow rate, making it difficult for stocks to recover. Increasing the shark catch will only exacerbate this."

Editors notes:

(1) An amendment was adopted in the Fisheries Committee to increase the ratio of shark fin to body to 6.5% of the overall catch weight, which means that the fishermen can throw away some of the sharks and still have enough bodies to account for the valuable fins they keep.

(2) In 2003, the EU adopted a regulation that supposedly banned the practice of finning - unfortunately, Member States were given a significant loophole whereby, in the name of "efficiency", they could issue derogations to their vessels to cut off the fins from the body as long as the bodies were kept on board as well. Since there is limited demand for shark bodies, though, the temptation is to find ways to throw them away. So the ratio of fin-to-body weight becomes important - a higher number means that less body is needed to justify the fins kept on board. For example, the current rule in the EU requires that the weight of fins be no more than 5% of the weight of the shark bodies.

Persmededeling van 28 september NA de stemming

EP backs calls to seriously curtail brutal shark finning

Commenting on the vote by the European Parliament today on the report (Miguélez Ramos) on shark finning, UK Green MEP Caroline Lucas said:
"The European Parliament has today sent a strong message on the need to amend EU rules to seriously curtail the brutal practice of shark finning. The Parliament adopted a Green amendment calling for a major reduction in the proportion of shark fin to body weight per catch from the current 5% to 2%. This will seriously limit the amount of shark bodies that can be discarded and reduce the practice of finning.

"The practice of finning involves hauling the animals on board, cutting off their fins and discarding the bodies, often still alive, with most of the fins exported to fill Asian soup bowls. While the repulsive practice of finning raises major animal rights issues (the sharks are often left to drown in a cruel way), it also has a serious impact on shark populations. Sharks are particularly vulnerable to over-fishing: most grow and reproduce at a very slow rate, making it difficult for stocks to recover. Hopefully, limiting shark finning will also combat the over-fishing of sharks."

Editors notes:

In 2003, the EU adopted a regulation that supposedly banned the practice of finning - unfortunately, Member States were given a significant loophole whereby, in the name of "efficiency", they could issue derogations to their vessels to cut off the fins from the body as long as the bodies were kept on board as well. Since there is limited demand for shark bodies, though, the temptation is to find ways to throw them away. So the ratio of fin-to-body weight becomes important - a higher number means that less body is needed to justify the fins kept on board. For example, the current rule in the EU requires that the weight of fins be no more than 5% of the weight of the shark bodies. The Parliament has today called on the Commission to restrict this to 2%, which would limit the practice of finning.