The 1998 agreement on the International Dolphin Conservation Program: Recent developments in the tuna-dolphin controversy in the eastern Pacific Ocean

The problem of incidental dolphin mortality in the eastern Pacific Ocean fisheries for yellowfin tuna is one of the longest running controversies in the modern international law of fisheries. Although initiatives in the last 30 years have been successful in reducing incidental mortality from very high levels to relatively modest levels, most of these have been either unilateral actions, principally by the United States, or voluntary agreements among the states concerned. In 1998, however, these states concluded a binding agreement that formalized and extended the existing voluntary arrangements. This article reviews the developments that led to the adoption of the 1998 agreement, summarizes its provisions, and looks at events since its adoption.