November 12, 2018 — Fisheries representatives and environmental activists from around the globe will convene through November 19 for the 21st Special Meeting of the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) in Dubrovnik, Croatia.
An international treaty organization, ICCAT is responsible for the conservation and management of tuna and tuna-like pelagic species (tuna, marlin, sharks, swordfish, etc.) found in the Atlantic Ocean.
Of all the discussion, debate and deliberation this week by the participating ICCAT nations, bigeye tuna decisions will have the biggest impact on Northeast canyon fishermen next season.
Based on a recent ICCAT scientific report, bigeye tuna is currently considered overfished and subject to overfishing. The major issue however is that the current international harvest cap of 65,000 tons set by ICCAT has been exceeded by approximately 20 thousand tons.