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Posté
Vendredi 09 Octobre 2009 par Véronique
The shark week is started…Time for all of us to strive for signatures for the petitions currently on progress.
- The European petition, in collaboration with Shark Alliance: it demands to Spain, main sharks fishing country in Europe, to modify its domestic fishing laws and regulations in order to enforce the protection measures adopted by the European Plan of Action for Sharks in April 2009, with, in particular, the finning ban rule (cutting off a shark's fin and discarding the body at sea). See the news dated August 20th 2009.
This year, we do hope to go beyond 100,000 signatures (last year record) to swamp Spanish government and thus demonstrate that all Europe is concerned with that deal!
- The Petition for sharks in New Caledonia (Pacific French overseas territories): that petition asks the Southern Province of New Caledonia to put the sharks in the list of the protected species. Currently, the sharks are not included in this list, established when New Caledonia has been registered, in July 2008, as World Heritage by UNESCO (United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization). This petition is jointly organized with 2 other local NGOs included in CAP Requins (i.e. Coalition of Associations for the Protection of Sharks).
We have got fruitful contacts with Environmental administration in the Southern province of New Caledonia. They received many petitions already sent (thanks to all petitioners for that!), each of them being like an efficient booster.
Unfortunately, the administration does not want to take any steps before the conclusions of a scientific survey in progress about the shark population have been produced. This point is delaying any decision until an unknown time limit. In fact, such a survey is not necessary. It is more urgent to apply the indispensable precautionary principle to make provisions for sharks. The petition is going on until the registration of the sharks in the list of protected species.
Moreover, to make more provisions for sharks yet, we demand as well a specific National protection. New Caledonian territories are split into 3 provinces rather autonomous, Southern province where is located the capital, Nouméa, being the more important. It is necessary to get some overall protection measures in New Caledonia. This is the condition to get a real protection for the whole Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), stretching from the edge of the territorial sea out to 200 nautical miles (370 kms)
Please join us to get as many petitions as possible !
They are indispensable to convince the New Caledonian administration.
Thanks for your action!
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