Project AWARE - Help Give Sharks A Fighting Chance

[LukeC]

Project AWARE Foundation and AWARE divers worldwide are outraged at the results of the recent Conference of the Parties to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES), held in Qatar in March. Proposals to restrict trade in eight shark species - spiny dogfish, porbeagle, oceanic whitetip, scalloped hammerhead, great hammerhead, smooth hammerhead, dusky and sandbar sharks - failed to receive the required two-thirds vote majority, representing victory for narrow, short-term economic interests over science and the myriad long-term benefits of conservation.

Despite international setbacks at CITES 2010, sharks have recently received historic, national protections in Europe, Palau and Maldives thanks to support from divers and advocates like you.

Don't let CITES failures predict the future for severely depleted shark populations. AWARE divers worldwide are joining together here, to declare our concern.

http://www.projectaware.org/givesharksachance

Project AWARE will deliver your signature, demanding better shark protection to CITES Party representatives.

[Andrew H]

Issues such as this and CITES listing are practically problematic. This is because they do not take into account when species are really only locally threatened species as opposed to worlwide threatened species.

For example the issues involving the long and short fin Mako sharks and recreational fishing which or such species in Australian Commonwelth waters because they are are not as threatened a species in Australian waters as elsewhere but listing will result in those species not being able to be recretaionally fished (leaving aside commercial fishing issues).

Practically, more resources and deterence needs to be directed to enforcement of illegal fishing that already occurs as opposed to introducing more restrictions that will likewise not be properly or adequately enforced.