What has been done?

• WWF has initiated the development of voluntary environmental certification of marine fisheries in Russia through the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) system. Today, at least 50% of white fish (cod, haddock and pollock) and 30% of sockeye salmon, the most valuable species of the Far Eastern salmons, are harvested in accordance with strict criteria of green audit.
• Russia has adopted a law on the protection of seas from oil pollution, which takes into account most of the key provisions on which WWF insisted.
• The Russian president signed a law banning Russian and foreign drift-net fishing in the Russian economic zone, which was consistently advocated by WWF. This prevents the annual death of about 200 thousand seabirds and 3 thousand mammals. The threat of overfishing of salmon on the migration routes has been reduced.
• As a result of cooperation between WWF, fishermen and scientists in the Far Eastern region, the use of gear and methods of fishing has began, which significantly reduces the mortality of seabirds in longline fisheries. Due to WWF initiative, the longline fleet is equipped with streamer lines. This will reduce the seabirds’ mortality and increase the profitability of the fishery.
• On WWF's initiative, the Longline Fisheries Association has adopted, for the first time in Russia, a document specifying the procedure for the observers’ work on its vessels. The community of cod and halibut fishermen will now collect information on the fishery and the reduction of its impact on seabird mortality. Also, at the suggestion of WWF, the Far Eastern State Technical Fisheries University (Vladivostok) and the Kamchatka State Technical University (Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky) introduced a professional program that teaches skills that are required for the observers in marine fisheries.
• As a result of WWF initiative, a criminal liability has been introduced for the extraction and trade of valuable species of sturgeon (for example, beluga, kaluga and Sakhalin sturgeon). This is a necessary step to reduce poaching and prevent the disappearance of sturgeon; that was once a Russian pride.