KEY POINTS:
Pacific nations are being called on to work together to protect tuna stocks.
Fisheries Minister Jim Anderton has made the plea at the Pacific Islands Forum fisheries meeting in Wellington this morning.
He said that if current patterns of over-fishing continue, bigeye and yellowfin tuna stocks will be destroyed and the fishery will collapse.
Mr Anderton said the stocks were at risk because of over-fishing in other regions.
"Annual catches of tuna and other highly migratory species in western and central Pacific waters are rising year after year," he said.
"Pacific countries, as well as those far away, are looking to increase their share of resources. We have some hard issues ahead."
Countries represented are Australia, Cook Islands, Nauru, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands and Tuvalu.
Outcomes will be reported to the Pacific Islands Forum annual conference in October.
- NZPA
