Biden gives Mexico a year to better protect endangered marine animals

MEXICO CITY — U.S. President Joe Biden is urging Mexico to step up conservation efforts for the endangered vaquita porpoise and the totoaba fish, threatening possible trade sanctions if there no results are evident within a year.

In a letter to the U.S. Congress sent Monday, Biden said that for now he's not directing the Treasury Department to impose trade measures on Mexican products because the Mexican government is implementing protective measures.

But he stated that various U.S. agencies "will monitor Mexico’s enforcement actions and progress and provide me with a report not later than 1 year from the date of this notification on whether these actions have reduced the illegal harvest and trafficking of totoaba and enhanced the conservation of vaquita."

The report will then be used to assess whether additional measures will be necessary, including trade restrictions. In 2021, the value of all seafood shipped from Mexico to the U.S. approached $600 million.

In February, U.S. authorities warned that the Latin American country was violating the environmental chapter of the trade agreement between the United States, Mexico and Canada (T-MEC).

By May, the U.S. Department of the Interior had also expressed concern about totoaba trafficking and inadequate conservation of the species.

In March, Mexico was sanctioned for several weeks by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) — a global treaty that regulates wildlife —because, despite presenting a plan to combat illegal totoaba fishing and protect the vaquita porpoise, the action plan was deemed inadequate.

“For decades, Mexico has failed to protect the vaquita, although several written plans have been presented. The United States has missed this opportunity to put more pressure on the Mexican government," said Alejandro Olivera, a representative of the Center for Biological Diversity, a nonprofit based in Arizona. "We know that illegal networks are still used to this day, so they continue to represent a risk for the vaquita," he added.

According to recent research by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, a membership union composed of both government and civil organizations, only about eight specimens of the vaquita remain.

The vaquita, a species endemic to Mexico, is the world's smallest and most endangered type of porpoise.

Biden also announced that he had ordered various federal agencies to convene a high-level meeting with Mexican authorities to discuss steps to reduce illegal totoaba trafficking and ensure the conservation of the vaquita.

Responding to Biden's letter, Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador thanked Biden on Tuesday for postponing trade sanctions against Mexico.

Little success combating illegal fishing

In April, an investigation by Noticias Telemundo and the Latin American Center for Investigative Journalism (CLIP) showed that the Mexican state has had little success in combating the illegal totoaba trade. Between 2016 and 2022, only 16 people were convicted in connection with this crime, according to data from the Federal Attorney for Environmental Protection.

In China, the swim bladder of the totoaba fish is considered a delicacy that has medicinal properties — and it has been priced at $60,000 per kilogram, according to a Brookings Institution report. This has triggered a great demand for the fish, though its capture has been prohibited in Mexico due to intense overfishing.

However, the exploitation of the totoaba fish not only affects this species: vaquitas are also victims of the nets used for totoaba fishing because they get entangled in them and die.

As recently as April 13, U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials seized 242 pounds of totoaba swim bladders at the Nogales, Arizona border port with an estimated value of $2.7 million.

In September 2022, the Chinese government released the results of the Qingfeng Action 2022 , a multidepartmental operation aimed at stopping illegal wildlife trade.

According to Chinese authorities, they registered 12,000 cases of crimes against wildlife, including 1,000 cases related to the smuggling of totoaba and other marine species.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security reported three incidents in which authorities seized totoaba bladders from Mexico found in shipments in California; the estimated values ​​for the totoaba was between $250,000 and $450,000.

According to data from Mexico's Attorney General requested by Noticias Telemundo, only 743 pieces of totoaba were seized between January 2016 and Oct. 31, 2022; 291 pieces were seized in Mexico City between 2018 and 2021.

In his letter, Biden urged Mexican authorities to strengthen the implementation of the CITES regulations and said that a calendar will be established to review the progress in protecting the totoaba and the vaquita porpoise.

Biden also instructed his government to support Mexico in combating the trafficking of these species and to collaborate in the training processes for Mexican authorities, should they request it.

Esteban Moctezuma, Mexican ambassador to the U.S., said on Twitter that the letter responds to pressure from nongovernmental organizations and that his government will work with the U.S. to preserve the livelihood of these animals.

Biden’s message, the diplomat wrote, is a “recognition of Mexico’s achievements in conservation and the drastic decline in illegal totoaba fishing."

Although Biden acknowledged that the Mexican government has taken some actions, he stated that “it has to do more” to protect both species or else the totoaba population will continue to decline and the vaquita will soon become extinct.

"These actions," Biden concluded in his letter, "hold the most promise of reducing illegal trade in totoaba and instituting effective conservation of the vaquita."

An earlier version of this story was first published in Noticias Telemundo.

This article was originally published on NBCNews.com