Austraila's Sharks Fall Victim To Shark Fin Trading
By Matt J. Weiss, August 23, 2008 @ 02:00 AM (EST)
Source: Abc.net.au
Shark Finners strike again-this time in Australia. The country has not often been associated with the perils of shark finning, but that should change according to the WWF.
Apparently, hundreds of tonnes of shark fins are being transported from sharks each year. WWF scientist Dr Gilly Llewellyn says "Using a really conservative estimate using the largest possible size of shark, using a low fin to weight ratio, that's still 10,000 sharks that would have needed to be killed for that amount of fin." She adds there is no scientific evidence as to whether this a sustainable amount. It seems to me however, that considering the large amount of sharks being killed worldwide each year, that is a number that the Australian government should not tolerate.
WWF has been urging the federal government to review their policies regarding shark finning. Hopefully, this will influence Australia’s decision to create a shark finning industry in the Great Barrier Reef National Park.
Apparently, hundreds of tonnes of shark fins are being transported from sharks each year. WWF scientist Dr Gilly Llewellyn says "Using a really conservative estimate using the largest possible size of shark, using a low fin to weight ratio, that's still 10,000 sharks that would have needed to be killed for that amount of fin." She adds there is no scientific evidence as to whether this a sustainable amount. It seems to me however, that considering the large amount of sharks being killed worldwide each year, that is a number that the Australian government should not tolerate.
WWF has been urging the federal government to review their policies regarding shark finning. Hopefully, this will influence Australia’s decision to create a shark finning industry in the Great Barrier Reef National Park.
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