Dateline, Ashgabat: The future of caviar
The Caspian sea is one home of the sturgeon, a large, unprepossessing fish that provides the world with one of its most tasty delicacies: caviar. On August 11th, delegates met in Ashgabat in a regular meeting of the Commission on the Biological Resources of the Caspian Sea to discuss revising the quota system between the states for Caspian sturgeon fishing.
Two big obstacles to fishing controls obtrude: first, there is significant poaching in Caspian waters, which makes quotas unenforceable. Rampant poaching (estimated at 70% of the annual harvest) undermines the efforts to control overfishing which will decimate the species. Second, pollution, particularly from oil spills, can severely decimate the sturgeon population. Sturgeons are bottom-feeders, who nudge earth away from their shellfish dinners. Therefore, pollution has the ability to kill not just fish, but their links on the food chain.
Politically, the Caspian Sea is still a realm of ambiguity in international law. Parts of its jurisdiction are held in trust; other aspects of Caspian offshore ownership are owned by states. The distinction as to whether the Caspian is a ‘Sea’ or a ‘Lake’ sets a precedent for either individual ownership or condominium rights. Perhaps partly because this distinction has not been settled to Iran’s satisfaction, it is not a member of the Commission. Without commission membership, Iran pretty much fishes as it will–over 50% of the catch estimated. However, Iran is making calls for conservation and the use of aquaculture. They were present at the Ashgabat meeting.
Primitive Fish in the Space Age: Satellite Tagging
In order to preserve the Genus of sturgeon that produce caviar, scientists in Kazakhstan have tagged some sturgeon to study their migratory habits via satellite. The tagging occurred in May of 2006, shortly after a conference in Ramsar, Iran, of the World Sturgeon Conservation Society. At that conference, the Ramsar Declaration on Global Sturgeon Conservation was proclaimed. Iran’s waters are also known for their various sturgeon species, and they are estimated to fish about 50% of Caspian sturgeon each year.
As usual though, the problem is not space, but here on earth: the Ramsar Declaration is available in English and German: but not Russian, Farsi, Azeri, Turkmeni, or Kazakh.
Poaching, oil, lack of enforcement, lack of agreement, lack of translation:
Good luck fish.
Further Reading:
The World Sturgeon Conservation Society (WSCS) in Germany
Wikipedia on Sturgeon and Caviar Production
Photo: Pew Ocean Science