U.S. Bans Dolphin Kills for Rest of Year

The federal government Tuesday announced a ban on the killing of dolphins by tuna fishermen for the remainder of the year to ensure that the number of the marine animals killed does not exceed the government’s annual limit.

The ban, which goes into effect Oct. 21, is another blow to West Coast tuna fishermen, who are suffering from stiff foreign competition and depressed tuna prices. The low prices have forced fishermen to increase production.

For reasons still unknown to scientists, dolphins tend to swim directly above schools of yellowfin tuna. Thus the easiest way for fishermen to find the tuna is to follow the dolphins. The air-breathing animals drown when they become entangled in the giant nets used by fishermen to catch tuna.

In 1976, the government established quotas under the Marine Mammal Protection Act on the number of dolphins that fishermen could kill. Since 1980, the quota has remained at 20,500 annually.

As of Oct. 5, an estimated 20,352 dolphins had been killed this year by fishermen, according to the National Marine Fisheries Service, the branch of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration charged with enforcing the quota. The agency said it expects fishermen to meet or exceed the quota by next week.

By comparison, an estimated 19,000 dolphins were killed in all of 1985 and 17,700 were killed in 1984, the fisheries service reported.

The ban will remain in effect until Jan. 1 and prohibit fishermen from netting yellowfin tuna by fishing “on” dolphins, according to Gary Smith, deputy regional director of the fisheries service in Los Angeles. Fishermen will be allowed to net yellowfin by other means, provided that a federal observer is aboard the vessel.

The government’s ban will apply to a vast area of the Eastern Pacific Ocean stretching from San Diego to Chile, Smith said. Fishermen could be fined as much as $25,000 for violating the order, he said.

Foreign vessels, which make up most of the world’s tuna fishing fleet, also will be required to comply with the order or will not be allowed to sell yellowfin in the United States, Smith added.

Smith said that there has been a greater abundance of yellowfin this year. Hence, fishermen have accidentally killed a greater number of the dolphins as they have gone after the fish, a premium white-meat tuna that fetches higher prices from processors than some other types of tuna.

“Our numbers indicate that the average catch of yellowfin per vessel has almost doubled this year over last,” Smith said. “Generally, they were getting 10 or 12 tons per set last year, but it is up to 22 to 26 tons. That is unusually high.”

Increase Production

The order will affect about 32 tuna vessels based in San Diego, home of the U.S. tuna fleet. August Felando, president of the American Tuna Boat Assn., said that besides increased competition from foreign fishermen and canneries, fishermen have had to increase their production to make up for a 40% drop in the price of yellowfin tuna since 1981.

“We’re just going to have to wait and see if vessels already out to sea will come in and stay at port, or try to make another trip out there,” Felando said. “Clearly, there will be a sharp reduction in the amount of yellowfin that will be landed by the U.S. fleet.”

Frank Alverson, vice president for Living Marine Resources Inc., a San Diego consulting firm that has worked with the tuna boat association to determine ways to decrease the number of dolphins accidentally killed, predicted that the fleet could lose $12 million in yellowfin sales to fish processors.

“I wouldn’t be surprised if (the ban) pushes someone’s head under the water,” Alverson said. “We are losing 71 days out of the year, which is a pretty big hunk.”