Cuba launches shark protection plan produced with US group

Cuba launches shark protection plan produced with US group
BY MICHAEL WEISSENSTEIN
Associated Press

HAVANA
Cuba announced Wednesday that it is launching a long-term plan to
preserve its sharks in cooperation with a U.S. environmental group, part
of a rapidly accelerating partnership between the two countries aimed at
preserving their shared waters in the Gulf of Mexico and Florida Straits.

Nearly a year after Presidents Barack Obama and Raul Castro announced
that they would end a half-century of official hostility and start
moving toward normalization, the most visible progress has been in the
realm of environmental protection.

The shark plan announced by Cuba after two years of work with the U.S
-based Environmental Defense Fund commits Cuba to recording shark
catches by fishing vessels and eventually implementing stricter rules
that would limit shark fishing and protect shark nurseries.

Secretary of State John Kerry announced in Valparaiso, Chile this month
that the U.S. and Cuba were signing an accord to work together on
protecting marine preservation areas in far western Cuba located a
relatively short distance from Texas and Florida across the Gulf of
Mexico and Florida Straits.

In April, a research vessel operated by the U.S. National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration carried marine scientists from Cuba and other
countries on a research cruise aimed at gathering information about the
spawning of blue-fin tuna, a commercially valuable and highly threatened
species.

"That voyage opens the possibility of deeper relations in the future,"
said Julio Baisre, a marine scientist and vice-director for science of
the Cuban National Aquarium. "We're hopeful, we're open to it. I think
there are many ways in which we can work together."

Cuba has perhaps the best-preserved environment in the region,
particularly in coastal waters boasting populations of fish, sharks and
coral in greater abundance than in other parts of the Caribbean where
overfishing has largely decimated marine life. Cuba's relatively
thriving marine environment is due to both strong environmental
protection and a lack of economic development because of the country's
struggling, centrally planned economy.

Sharks, the highest predator in many marine food chains, have been
decimated by overfishing across the world. Protection of sharks and
marine life is taking on increasing economic importance for Cuba as
warming with the U.S. attracts a flood of tourists, many drawn to the
island's spectacular diving and snorkeling sites.

Because many larger marine species migrate between Cuban waters and
those of Mexico and the United States, American environmental groups are
eager to help the island preserve its gains by bringing U.S. expertise
and technology that can be used by Cuban scientists.

The shark plan commits Cuba to providing fisherman with training in
identifying sharks and recording shark catches, then places limits on
the size and number of sharks that Cuban fisherman can catch, and where
they can catch them.

The Environmental Defense Fund is signing a memorandum of understanding
with Cuba this week that envisions bringing American scientists to Cuba
for at least three years to help researchers here to help put the new
shark protection plan into effect.

"The environment is the lowest-hanging fruit," said Daniel Whittle, the
Environmental Defense Fund's senior director for Cuba. "It's in our
national interest when Cuba protects its resources."

Source: Cuba launches shark protection plan produced with US group |
Miami Herald -
http://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/environment/article40747173.html