The BBC reports on the passing of the High Seas Treaty by the United Nations last week. The agreement aims to add 30% of the planet’s high seas into marine protected areas (MPAs) by 2030. The new MPAs will only allow activities within these areas but only “provided they are consistent with the conservation objectives.”
There was great news for sharks on UN World Oceans Day. Seasave reports that Hawaii Governor David Ige signed nine new laws in a ceremony to mark World Oceans Day, including a ban on intentionally or knowingly capturing, entangling or killing a shark in state marine waters. Meanwhile, in the US Senate, a bill passed that bans the transport, sale, or purchase of shark fins.
Sea Save has launched a campaign to support the passage of the Shark Fin Sales Elimination Act. It aims to ban the buying and selling of shark fin within the US. The Act was passed through Congress during the last session, but the Senate took no action. One way to ensure that the Act gets the attention it deserves from politicians is to send your elected representative an email expressing your support.
A new study of small scale fisheries published in the journal “Biological Conservation” shows that the total number of sharks and rays caught is estimated to be 2.5 million animals, more than 73% greater than officially reported.
The Indonesian government has deliberately sunk a further 81 foreign vessels that had been caught illegally fishing in the nation’s waters. The Bangkok Post reports that the boats were of Vietnamese, Philippine, Malaysian and Thai origin. The ships were blown up at sea in 12 locations around the archipelago on Saturday. (Image by Antoni Halim/Shutterstock.com)
The Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) reports that the Indonesian authorities have foiled an attempt to export two whale sharks (Rhincodon typus) into the marine megafauna trade in China and SE Asia.
Aru is a cluster of 300 small tinny islands where greatest birds of paradise are living harmoniously with kangaroos, black cockatoos & crocodile. This heavenly place is threatened to be destroyed recently by a stupid & greedy plan of our government to develop 500 000 hectares of sugar cane plantation across this region. Please stand in solidarity with us to SAVE ARU ISLANDS by signing the Avaaz petition and supporting the movement.
Shark Savers has announced that the decree that created the Raja Ampat Shark and Ray Sanctuary has been written into provincial law by the Raja Ampat parliament. The sanctuary was originally created in September 2010 by use of a local Bupati decree, after the council was presented with an 8,500 strong petition. Since then, Shark Savers, Conservation International, the Nature Conservancy, WildAid, CORAL, Papua Diving and Misool Eco Resort have campaigned to get it enshrined in a more permanent and enforceable law. The resulting legal framework is the first of its kind in Indonesia and the Coral Triangle.
The short film, Baja, was recently awarded the 2013 Stan Waterman Award for Excellence in Underwater Videography, a part of the Beneath the Sea (BTS) imaging contest. The filmmaker describes his project as being:
“Finally completed after a year of hard work and dedication, it was made to show and share with you the amazing and beautiful creatures that inhabit its waters. These beauties are still there, but most threatened. Many fish stocks have been depleted due to uncontrolled illegal fishing worldwide, especially in breeding and marine protected areas.”