Fishing for a Solution: The Role of the United States in Preventing Collapse of the Eastern Atlantic Bluefin Fishery
Editors' Summary: Overfishing currently jeopardizes a variety of stocks around the world. The Atlantic bluefin tuna, a fish that has increased exponentially in commercial value in past decades, is one such species at risk. Eastern and western Atlantic bluefin populations are managed as two distinct stocks, but because the two mix significantly, overfishing in the eastern Atlantic is straining the already overexploited western Atlantic bluefin. Therefore, as Christine Goepp Towberman explains, the United States has an interest in protecting the eastern Atlantic stock even though the United States neither harvests nor consumes a significant amount of eastern Atlantic bluefin. In this Article, she focuses on multilateral measures addressing two key international fishery issues that affect the eastern Atlantic bluefin tuna: (1) controlling IUU fishing; and (2) setting a total allowable catch. She then examines the possibility of U.S. unilateral trade sanctions. Finally, she sets out recommendations for a comprehensive U.S. approach to improving Atlantic bluefin fisheries management and staving off ultimate stock collapse.