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March 9, 1999 Memo to: People Interested in Dolphins From: David Phillips, Mark J. Palmer, & Mark Berman RE: Update on Tuna/Dolphin Issue in U.S. 3 Largest U.S. Tuna Companies Pledge to Remain Dolphin-Safe This message will update you on the current status of the tuna/dolphin issue in the United States. We are pleased to report that there have been several important advances for "dolphin safe" tuna. Legislation: As you know, in 1997 the United States Congress passed the International Dolphin Conservation Act, which was intended as a full assault on our dolphin protection laws. Thanks to opposition from thousands of activists, the Dolphin Safe/Fair Trade Campaign, and to a threatened filibuster by Senator Barbara Boxer, we fought off the worst aspects of the bill. However, the legislation has two major impacts on the "dolphin safe" issue:
Grassroots letter to the Secretary of Commerce continue to be extremely important! Status of U.S. Tuna Embargo: The U.S. tuna embargo is still in effect. We expect the embargo to remain in effect for at least 6 months, and possibly longer. While a new International Dolphin Conservation Agreement (IDCA) has now been ratified by four nations (U.S., Panama, Mexico, and Ecuador) and is therefore about to be certified as "in effect," this new agreement does not match U.S. law. For example, the U.S. Congress specified that the new IDCA should continue to annually reduce dolphin deaths. Instead, the final IDCA allows the tuna industry to kill up to 5,000 dolphin annually in perpetuity. (See attached fact sheet by Earth Island on other problems with the IDCA.) The Dept. of Commerce must now publish regulations to implement the legislation, before they can drop the tuna embargo. They are having some difficulty, in part because the legislative requirements do not match the final IDCA that was passed, and in part because the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission has not established an international tuna tracking system to document "dolphin safe" fishing. Once the regulations are published, there will be a public comment period. We will continue to oppose any lifting of the tuna embargo and any sale of dolphin-deadly tuna in the U.S. Status of U.S. "Dolphin Safe" Standards: The current U.S. "dolphin safe" standards remain in effect, which are the same standards developed by Earth Island Institute in cooperation with the three major U.S. tuna processors (no encirclement of any dolphins during the entire fishing trip; no accidental deaths or serious injuries of dolphins in nets). The Secretary of Commerce may weaken these standards, to allow tuna to be labeled "dolphin safe" if the on-board observer claims no dolphins were observed killed or "seriously injured" during any one net set. (Dolphin-safe and dolphin-deadly tuna could be mixed on board, and separated later after the trip, under these new weaker standards.) However, there are several scientific and political problems with the Secretary's finding. Science of "Dolphin Safe" Tuna: The Commerce Secretary must, under law, make his finding based on science. Is there scientific evidence that chasing and setting nets on dolphins causes significant adverse impacts on depleted dolphin populations? The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) has completed a report and population study on this issue, which is being reviewed internally next week by a special "peer review" panel. The NMFS conclusions, while still confidential, indicate that, despite extremely reduced observed mortality for dolphins since 1990, depleted dolphin populations are NOT recovering at expected rates, and that some dolphin populations may be continuing to decline. This evidence strongly suggests that chasing and setting nets on dolphins -- even when the dolphins are reported released alive -- is still killing dolphins or interfering with their reproduction. U.S. Tuna Companies Will Remain Truly "Dolphin Safe": Recently, the three large U.S. tuna processors -- StarKist, Chicken of the Sea, and BumbleBee -- which comprise 90% of the U.S. tuna market, sent a letter to the Commerce Secretary, announcing that they will continue to only buy and sell "dolphin safe" tuna under their current strong standards (no encirclement of dolphins), regardless of what the federal government decides. (See attached letter from U.S. Tuna Foundation.) This is a tremendous development for us and for dolphins. Essentially what this means is that even if the Commerce Secretary weakens the standards for the "dolphin safe" tuna label, that the three largest tuna processors will not accept tuna from fishermen who set nets on dolphins, in accordance with Earth Island's existing "dolphin safe" policy. We are working on contacting major tuna retail outlets in the U.S., such as supermarket, hotel, and restaurant chains, institutions like schools and hospitals, etc., to obtain similar pledges to buy only truly "dolphin safe" (no encirclement) tuna. It is important for activists to realize that countries failing to get dolphin-unsafe tuna into the U.S. may intensify efforts to force it into Europe and Latin America. We need to be even more careful to watch for tuna labeled as "dolphin safe," but failing to meet our no netting standards. Please contact Earth Island Institute if you become aware of tuna falsely labeled as "dolphin safe." Grassroots and Legal Efforts: At the same time, Earth Island Institute and the Dolphin Safe/Fair Trade Campaign continue our grassroots efforts to protect dolphins, having generated hundreds of thousands of cards and letters to the President and the Secretary of Commerce urging retention of the current strong standards for the "dolphin safe" tuna label. Should the Commerce Secretary choose to weaken the standards for "dolphin safe" tuna in April (remember, he is under strong political pressure to ignore the scientific evidence of his own experts), we feel we are in a good legal position to successfully challenge that decision and obtain a reversal in federal court. We are working with our lawyers now on that effort, should the decision go against us. Thank you for all the efforts you have made in certifying tuna as "dolphin safe." We are continuing to fight to maintain the strong U.S. "dolphin safe" standards and shut down markets around the world to dolphin-deadly tuna. With your help, we continue to move towards our goal of ending all mortality of dolphins in tuna nets. What you can do: (1) If you have not already done so, write a letter to the Secretary of Commerce William Daley, and urge him to keep the current strong federal standards for the "dolphin safe" tuna label in place. Do not be fooled by claims that standards that allow the chasing, netting, injuring and killing of dolphins can be sufficient for "dolphin safe." Keep the label honest; keep the nets off dolphins! Ask that your letter be added to the official record. Address:
(2) Write letters to the heads of the three major tuna companies, thanking them for maintaining their strong, current standards for "dolphin safe" tuna (no encirclement of dolphins with nets during the entire fishing trip!)
For further information, please contact: Earth Island Institute |