Asian Foes Reach Eel Deal

Although it is still unclear whether they would go forward to a détente in Northeast Asia, four nations agreed with a regulation on an unfamiliar marine resource for the Westerners, eel. Japan, China, South Korea and Taiwan reached a deal to reduce total amount of cultivated eels by twenty percent in 2015. Different from ethical dispute on whale hunting, the regulation was set genuinely from the perspective of protecting the resource for sustainable production. However, the deal showed that those nations could cooperate together in a minor issue, while disputing over territory, sovereignty or history.

The resource of baby Japanese eel has been tapered off these decades. Catch of Japanese eel reduced to 5.2 metric tons from 50 tons in 1970, which caused the listing as “endangered” by International Union for Conservation of Nature this spring. It is possible that Washington Convention will be discussing comprehensive embargo of Japanese eel in the meeting in 2016.

The greatest consumer of eel among those four nations is the Japanese. Most Japanese believe in an old story that eating eel in the summer keeps them alive. Eels caught by China and Taiwan is mainly exported to Japan. Concerning current jeopardy of the resource, Japan has been leading the discussion of regulation. Worried about international trade regulation on this species, China and Taiwan got on the deal for their own business.

The agreement is not a binding rule for the parties. Actual management will be exercised by private volunteer organization in each country being established by November, which will report the situation of the resource to international non-governmental organization. There is an argument that the regulation is not enough and it is necessary for them to achieve a binding system. Illegal trafficking is another point to be considered.

For disappointment of the Japanese, it will be inevitable that price of eel in the restaurants will be raised. Prime cost of eel was doubled in these few years, annoying the buyers. Restaurant owners are worried about that the price will not decline, even if those Asian nations are successful in protection. Biological study of eel is not sufficient to fully control the resource. Without technology for artificial hatching, raising eel needs to be done with natural baby eels caught in the sea. It is possible that current reduction might be caused by climate change in Western Pacific. They have not found a fundamental solution on eel fishery.