Study: Bigeye tuna stocks in Pacific under threat

Source: Associated Press

BANGKOK, Thailand — Environmentalists want tougher restrictions on the industrial-scale fishing of bigeye tuna in the Pacific Ocean after new research showed current measures are failing and will do little to sustain stocks of a fish that is popular in sushi bars the world over.

The findings will intensify a debate between the multibillion dollar fishing industry and conservationists over the best ways to protect 23 tuna species, nine of which are threatened with extinction.

Bigeye and yellowfin tuna, which can grow to 8 or 9 feet (2.4-2.7 meters) long and weigh more than 450 pounds (200 kilograms), are not in immediate danger of being wiped out, but have been hit hard by overfishing. The fish are used mostly for steaks, and in the case of bigeye, sushi.

The western and central Pacific region accounts for 55 percent of the world's tuna production with a value of $4 billion to $5 billion. Tuna stocks in the region have fallen since the 1960s, driven down by increasing numbers of industrial fishing fleets.



Read more: http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5jGLEq-1P5S8zLPIMujnZXGoDqfYgD9AFR62O0