Kiribati President Anote Tong announced that his country will soon impose a commercial fishing ban inside the Phoenix Islands Protected Area.
The President announced the plan during the opening keynote speech at the U.S. State Department's Our Oceans conference. The conference was attended by international leaders, policy makers and industry players to discuss the implications of climate change and other issues surrounding the protection of the oceans.
According to the Los Angeles Times, Kiribati will impose a ban on commercial fishing in their oceans. Kiribati's waters were famous breeding grounds for tuna. Since their country's economy was small, the government carefully studied the projected loss of revenue that this system might create. In addition to tuna fishing, Kiribati's economy was strongly supported by dried coconut meat.
Climate change is a major issues for the island nation. Kiribati is near the equator at the northern border of Fiji. As a nation surrounded by waters, Kiribati faces rising sea levels and high tides. Rising water eroded their croplands and destroyed acres of food crops. The freshwater supply of the country is also currently being threatened.
Nevertheless, combating the effects of climate change "is not about economics, not anymore. It is not a political football," Tong said, as quoted by the L.A. Times. "It is now about what we must do together as responsible global citizens. No one country can do anything on its own to effect the kind of changes required."
He also explained to the summit that his country banned fishing within a 12 mile nautical zone for every land mass in the Line Islands.
The marine protected area for Kiribati is about the size of California. The ban on commercial fishing for the entire protected area will officially take effect on January 1, 2015.
