Shark fins are not illegal, Costa Rica’s environment minister reminds lawmakers

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May 15^th, 2015 (InsideCostaRica.com) The possession and sale of shark fins, as well as fishing for sharks, is not against the law in Costa Rica, Minister of Environment and Energy, Edgar Gutierrez reminding lawmakers while appearing before Costa Rica’s Legislative Assembly yesterday.

Gutierrez told lawmakers that fishing for sharks is legal in the country, and the harvesting and sale of their fins is legal so long as the fins are not cut off at sea.

Gutierrez said that the practice of shark finning, as defined by Costa Rican law, only occurs when fishermen cut off the animals’ fins at sea and return the animal to the water to die.  When fins are harvested after reaching port, Gutierrez contends, it is simply “making use of the animal.”

“Here there is a difference when the animal enters port, with the fins attached to the animal after having already been fished, that is not shark finning, that is making use of the animal, exactly as would happen regardless if it is a shark or any other animal.  Shark finning is when the fisherman cuts the fins at sea and throws the rest of the animal into the sea to die,” Gutierrez said.

And, Gutierrez added, while the practice of removing fins at sea is prohibited, there are currently no penalties for the practice defined by law, though he supports a bill making its way through the Legislature to define such penalties.

Lawmakers questioned Gutierrez over the issue after media criticism last month revealed that fins harvested from Eastern Pacific Scalloped Hammerhead sharks, a species considered endangered under the U.S. Endangered Species Act, were being flown from Costa Rica to the U.S. en route to Hong Kong.

American Airlines announced via Twitter last month that they would no longer ship shark fins after a story appearing on Inside Costa Rica identified the airline as the shipper of more than 600 kilos of the fins between November and December 2014.

The April story was based on documents obtained by conservation groups, Turtle Island Restoration Network and PRETOMA.

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