Forensic Fisheries Science: Literature Review and Research Suggestions

Recent years have seen a dramatic increase in litigation against the National Marine Fisheries Service, NOAA. Litigation may affect personnel throughout the agency, including scientists, whose work is often directly or indirectly influenced by complex legal requirements, but who may not be in a position to comment or engage in public dialogue. It may be helpful for scientists and other agency personnel to join the ongoing discussion in the legal community regarding the interface of science and law. This paper provides a starting point with a selected introduction to relevant legal literature in this area. It uses the phrase “forensic fisheries science” to describe the application of science to legal requirements in the fishery management context. It concludes with suggestions for future research that could assist NMFS scientists as they grapple with the challenge of using science to help the agency meet its complex legal requirements. Forensic: belonging to, used in, or suitable to courts of judicature or to public discussion and debate; argumentative, rhetorical; relating to or dealing with the application of scientific knowledge to legal problems (Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary )

SAMUDRA Report No. 64, March 2013

Contents: At a crossroads: England’s small-scale fisheries are being integrated within a national system. Diversionary tactics: Most of Peru’s anchoveta catches meant for human consumption are being diverted. Fair, sustainable? The new EU-Mauritania Fisheries Agreement has been welcomed—and spurned. A weighty responsibility: A fisheries reform process is under way in several parts of Africa. Sri Lanka. Restoring past glory: The Regional Fisheries Livelihoods Programme focuses on fisheries in the Negombo lagoon. Need for vigilance: Summary of a study on globalization and trade treaties in Atlantic Canadian fisheries. A collective voice: A national workshop on the ILO Work in Fishing Convention was held in Goa, India. Short-term model: Brazil is backing increased production through industrial fisheries and aquaculture. Living the learning. 70 participants from the Honduran Caribbean coast gathered at a conference on SSF. Brazil. Towards synthesis: On the approach of civil society organizations towards the proposed SSF Guidlines.

Trade secrets: a ten year overview of the illegal import of sea turtle products into the United States

For more than 25 years all sea turtle products have been prohibited from international commerce by the 170-member nations of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES). Sea turtles continue to be threatened by direct take (including poaching) and illegal trade despite multi-national protection efforts. Although take may contribute significantly to sea turtle decline, illegal take is difficult to measure since there are few quantified records associated with legal fisheries and fewer still for illegal take (poaching). We can, however, quantify one portion of the illegal sea turtle trade by determining how many illegal products were seized at United States ports of entry over a recent 10-year period. The United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) oversees the import and export of wildlife and wildlife products, ensuring that wildlife trade complies with United States laws and international treaties. Additionally, the USFWS has legal authority to target suspected illegal wildlife activity through undercover and field investigations. In an effort to assess the scale of illegal sea turtle take and trade, we have conducted a 10-year (1994 – 2003) review of the law enforcement database maintained by the USFWS. This database tracks the number and type of wildlife cases, the quantity of seized products, and the penalties assessed against violators. These data are minimum estimates of the sea turtle products passing through the United States borders, as smuggled wildlife is oftentimes not detected.