Aug 14, 2020
As per the US law of imports, any exporting nation that harvests shrimp affecting sea turtles, US law forbids it from importing such shrimp.
The Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute (CMFRI) has introduced a research project to assess the status of 27 species of marine mammals and five species of sea turtles in Indian waters to safeguard the marine lives to match US laws.
The project with a of ₹5.66 crore is funded by the Marine Products Export Development Authority (MPEDA) for a period three years. The purpose of the project aims to address the crucial information gap on the status of stocks of marine mammals and by-catch of sea turtles.
This research holds significance of such studies in the context of emerging seafood trade-related challenges faced by the country. The US-based National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has said that seafood exporting countries should not allow intentional killing of marine mammals in commercial fisheries and should strictly adhere to the trade policies. This is in keeping with the provisions of Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA).
For exporting seafood, fish and fish products, the US has given a five-year exemption period starting January 1, 2017 to nations for developing regulatory programmes by assessing marine mammal stocks, estimating by-catch, calculating by-catch limits, and reducing total by-catch.
Likewise, US Public Law provides that shrimp products should not be imported unless the US certifies that the exporting nation harvests shrimp without adversely affecting sea turtles. Following this, the US has banned import of wild caught shrimp from India from May 2018. Thus for the immediate measures, the access by CMRI is necessary to conduct such research for India to be at par with US requirements.
J.K. Jena, Deputy Director General of Indian Council of Agricultural Research, said in a webinar, “The project would bolster the preparedness of the country in meeting the challenges faced by the seafood export industry, and enhance the indigenous capacity to address the emerging conservation concerns of marine mammals and sea turtles”.
K.S. Srinivas, Chairman, MPEDA, stated that India is looking forward to this project, which is being implemented with technical support from NOAA, with a hope that it would help solve the issues related to seafood export of the country.
A. Gopalakrishnan, CMFRI Director, CMFRI, educed the significant achievements made by scientists of the institute in research on marine mammals and sea turtles. “Marine mammals and sea turtles play key roles in maintaining marine ecosystems. Considering the need for conservation, the Wildlife (Protection) Act 1972 listed all the species of marine mammals and sea turtles under Schedule I. However, fisheries interaction and other human interventions have negative effects on the population of these mega fauna. This is evident from frequent reports on by-catch and stranding of these animals along the coastline of India. While government and non-government organisations have undertaken studies on distribution, biological and ecological characteristics, the information on status of stocks of marine mammals as well as by-catch of sea turtles is not available,” he informed.