"For many in the conservation community, the long-awaited deal doesn’t go far enough to curb overfishing."

"After 20 years of failed negotiations, the World Trade Organization (WTO) has secured a deal to curb harmful subsidies that contribute to overfishing. Conservationists and campaign groups welcomed last week’s agreement as historic, despite criticism of “big holes” in the agreement.

The deal was the first concluded in Geneva, Switzerland, for all 164 member states of the WTO with “environmental sustainability” at its core, the organization’s director-general, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, said in her closing speech.

Fishing subsidies are considered the biggest factor in depleting global fish populations. Without subsidies, much fishing on the high seas would not be profitable, including the most damaging trawling along the seabed, according to a 2008 study."

Karen McVeigh reports for the Guardian/ClimateDesk July 1, 2022. [2]