June 24, 2016 — The United States is proposing to extend catch limits on Pacific bluefin tuna in the eastern Pacific for another two years, as scientists have recommended, at the upcoming Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission (IATTC) meeting. The United States is also proposing a long-term framework for rebuilding the overfished species that spans the Pacific and many international boundaries.
The proposal for consideration at the upcoming meeting at the end of June represents the latest step by the United States to manage fishing impacts on Pacific bluefin so the species can recover from its current low levels.
A May 2016 stock assessment conducted by the International Scientific Committee for Tuna and Tuna-like Species in the North Pacific Ocean (ISC) found that Pacific bluefin spawning stock in 2014 amounted to just 2.6 percent of what it would be without fishing. The ISC is expected to finalize the stock assessment at its upcoming July meeting.