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WASHINGTON — A presidential task force on Tuesday proposed a series of steps aimed at curbing “pirate fishing” and the sale of falsely labeled seafood, according to administration officials.

 

The recommendations include establishing the first national “traceability program” to track seafood from point of harvest to entry into U.S. markets. The group also directed the secretaries of Defense and Homeland Security to include illegal, unregulated and unreported fishing — known as “black market” or “pirate” fishing — as part of the routine threat analysis their agencies perform on the world’s oceans. The secretary of state is directed to make reducing pirate fishing “a diplomatic priority.”

 

Scientists, law enforcement officials and environmentalists have identified illegal fishing as a major problem that contributes to depletion of the oceans and funds criminal operations worldwide.

 

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