Eel Scientific Meeting
Hiroshi HakoyamaAttended the Eel Scientific Meeting as a representative of the Japanese delegation
There is concern about the decline of Japanese eel resources, and domestic and international cooperation is being conducted for resource management. Regarding international cooperation, the “Informal Consultation on International Cooperation for Conservation and Management of Japanese Eel Stock and Other Relevant Eel Species” (hereinafter referred to as the “Informal Consultation”) has been held by Japan, China, Korea and Chinese Taipei since 2012. The Informal Consultation is held annually, and one of the major achievements so far is that, based on the “Joint Statement on the Conservation and Management of Japanese Eel and Other Related Eel Species” at the 7th Consultation in September 2014, each country and region agreed to reduce the number of Japanese eels introduced into ponds by 20% from the most recent amount at that time. In response to this joint statement, the cap on the number of Japanese eels introduced into ponds in Japan, including domestic catches and imports, was set at 21.7 tonnes and will remain in place until 2024.
The 14th Informal Consultation also agreed to hold a series of scientific meetings in 2021, recognising the need for scientific advice in resource management. On this basis, the first eel scientific meeting was held online in April 2022, the second in Ueda City, Nagano Prefecture in May 2023 and the third in Tokyo in June 2024. The Scientific Meeting will be attended mainly by researchers from Japan, China, South Korea and Chinese Taipei, and will also invite American eel and European eel fisheries scientists as invited speakers to deepen the discussions. Professor Hiroshi Hakoyama of the Institute of Freshwater Biology is leading the Japanese delegation to the scientific meeting. The photo shows researchers and government officials from the four countries and regions visiting the Institute of Freshwater Biology during an excursion for the second Scientific Meeting in Ueda City.