Trophy hunting and tuna fishing made for interesting bedfellows at the 2016 International Union for Conservation of Nature’s World Conservation Congress last week.
Delegates from more than 160 countries gathered in Honolulu to vote on how best to address some of the world’s most pressing environmental issues, from wildlife trafficking and deforestation to ocean acidification and climate change.
On the table was an ambitious proposal — to protect 30 percent of earth’s oceans from extractive activities, such as fishing and oil drilling, by 2030.
Among the naysayers was the Honolulu-based Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council — otherwise known as Wespac — a quasi-governmental agency that oversees commercial fisheries and is charged with maintaining a sustainable fishery. But Wespac often comes under fire for what’s seen as its support of Hawaii’s longline fishing industry over conservation.
