A recent study conducted by the World Wide Fund for Nature-Pakistan (WWF-P), shows that a staggering number of dolphins are killed every year as by catch, after being entrapped in tuna gillnets. The estimated annual mortality figure for dolphins is 12,000, where they face serious threats in Pakistan due to degradation of habitat, pollution and entanglement in fishing nets.

Pakistan is one of the few countries where a gillnet is still being used for catching different species of tuna, with yellow fin tuna as the main one, being reported in commercial catches. Even though this tuna, because of which dolphins are succumbed to their death, is one of the world’s favourite and highly-priced fish, the improper handling of catch and a lack of storage facilities on local fishing vessels make it a non-consumable item in the city market. These species, caught in large numbers in Pakistan are actually smuggled to Iran, leaving a small portion of the total catch for export. This venture is not only non-profitable, but is also aggressively killing the limited number of dolphins that exist.

The fast disappearance of this top predator from marine waters will have a direct bearing on our fragile ecosystem. A single tuna vessel, it is estimated, kills about 24 dolphins a year during its operations, where there are about 500 tuna vessels, currently operating in Pakistani waters. This rapid depletion of dolphins can only be stopped if there are appropriate management measures including a ban on new entries in tuna gillnet fishing, compliance to the United Nations General Assembly resolutions restricting gillnet length to 2.5km and a declaration of marine protected areas. If the government remains oblivious to the dangers of the current system, it is safe to say that dolphins in Pakistan have no future.

The project, Marine Dolphin Conservation through Community Education and Capacity Building in collaboration with the WWF, and funded by the Ocean Park Conservation Foundation, Hong Kong is one where a number of fishermen have been trained to rescue entangled dolphins and other endangered marine animals. It is high time that our current government starts thinking about the environmental conservation, rather than only making sure they have the upper hand with their opposition.