20 November 2014: Experts from the Food and Agricultural Organization of the UN (FAO) fisheries organizations and national Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) authorities from 23 countries met to develop a new set of regional, harmonized measures for the management and conservation of the queen conch.

This 2nd meeting was held in Panama City, Panama, from 18-20 November 2014, under the umbrella of the Working Group of the Caribbean Fisheries Management Council (CFMC), Organization for the Fisheries and Aquaculture Sector of the Central American Isthmus (OSPESCA), Western Central Atlantic Fishery Commission (WECAFC) and the Caribbean Regional Fisheries Mechanism (CRFM) Working Group on Queen Conch.

Meeting participants reviewed a draft queen conch management and conservation plan with 26 potential measures. The Working Group agreed which measures will contribute most to the sustainability of the stocks and livelihoods of people working in queen conch fisheries.

The experts recommended 16 measures as suitable for regional-level harmonization. Most of the measures identified are applied already by many range States. Adoption of a final set of regionally-harmonized management measures is expected to take place at the 16th session of the Western Central Atlantic Fishery Commission (WECAFC) and the 17th meeting of the Conference of Parties to CITES in 2016.

Following-up on CITES’ COP 16 Decisions (2013) and WECAFC Recommendation WECAFC/15/2014/3 on queen conch, the Working Group also reached agreement on the format for Non-Detriment Findings (NDFs) assessments. In the future, the Working Group seeks to recommend the development of an auditable “chain of custody” procedure to track catches from their catch location to their eventual destination, and on increasing awareness.

The Working Group was established by the 14th session of WECAFC in February 2012. The meeting was co-organized and sponsored by CFM, the CITES Secretariat, WECAFC and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO). [CITES News]