Developing Trinational Management of Gulf of Mexico Shark Fisheries

The Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean Sea ecoregion contains approximately 20% of the world’s biodiversity of shark species. In the Gulf, significant fisheries catching migratory sharks exist in the three nations -- the U.S., Mexico and Cuba -- whose EEZs comprise nearly the entire Gulf. Shark stock assessments in the U.S. consider some landings data from Mexican fisheries but for the most part the three nations’ management systems are not coordinated and severe overfishing of some Gulf sharks has occurred. Current management in the U.S. Gulf has resulted in a race to fish, illegal fishing at the U.S.-Mexico border is a serious problem, and Cuba's shark fisheries might be expanded in the near future. In this project, Environmental Defense Fund and Mote Marine Laboratory have partnered to work with U.S., Mexican and Cuban stakeholders, scientists and policy makers to explore the development of an innovative, multi-national approach to shark fisheries management in the Gulf of Mexico. Ultimately, an approach that aligns people's food and income needs with shark conservation has the best chance for success. One approach, catch share management, could allocate secure privileges to a safe harvest level or fishing grounds to fishermen and communities to offer incentives for long-term sustainability. Catch shares are being increasingly used to manage a variety of fisheries within many nations’ boundaries, including Mexico and the U.S., but have not been used much across international borders. The project has completed the first year of a multi-year plan and progress includes building trilateral partnerships, steps toward improved landings data collection in Cuba and Mexico, and consideration of catch shares for managing U.S. Gulf sharks. One major challenge is the strained political relationship between the U.S. and Cuba, which is why EDF and Mote as independent NGOs can facilitate this important effort.