UNESCO recommends delaying "In-danger" designation for Vaquita habitat
by Center for Biological Diversity 15 Jun 2018 04:45 UTC
“In-Danger” designation for vaquita habitat could be delayed © Thomas A Jefferson / WWF
Despite the vaquita porpoise's near extinction, the UNESCO World Heritage Centre (WHC) and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) have recommended postponing "in danger" status for the Islands and Protected Areas of the Gulf of California World Heritage site. The delay comes despite Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto's failure to safeguard the vaquita.
The area was named a World Heritage site in 2005, in part to protect the vaquita, a small porpoise with fewer than 30 individuals remaining. The vaquita is losing half its population each year because of entanglement in fishing gear. If current rates continue, the vaquita will be extinct by 2021.
"Delay equals death for the vaquita," said Alejandro Olivera, the Center for Biological Diversity's Mexico's representative. "More than half the vaquita's population has vanished during President Peña Nieto's time in office. UNESCO should not delay these crucial safeguards until the next administration and let the president off the hook for failing to protect these porpoises."
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