Greenpeace held a similar news conference in South Korea last week, and it will soon make the same demand on Japan, reports MonstersAndCritics.
According to the news organisation, Japan is the world's top tuna-catching nation, and Taiwan is the second-largest.
At the Taipei news conference, Greenpeace and the Environment and Animal Society of Taiwan jointly urged the Taiwan government to join the global community to cut the Pacific tuna catch by 50 per cent. Scientists warn that if current exploitation trends continue all commercial fish species could be wiped out by 2048.
The two groups asked Taiwan to support the Western and Central Pacific Fishery Commission (WCPFC) to close the four pockets of international waters in the Pacific Ocean as marine reserves to sustain the tuna stocks, reports MonstersAndCritics.
'If we don't take immediate action now, there will be no tuna left for future generations. As a key player in Pacific fisheries, Taiwan should work with other governments to cut the Pacific tuna catch by 50 per cent including closure of the four high seas pockets, and enforce effective measures to regulate the Taiwanese fleet and stop pirate fishing,' Greenpeace Spokesman Stephen Campbell said.
Greenpeace Talks Tuna to Taiwan
TAIPEI, TAIWAN - Greenpeace and a Taiwan conservation group on Tuesday called on Taiwan to cut down its tuna catch, because overfishing could cause tuna's extinction by 2048.
