1.
Carta Abierta Presidente O. Humala - 1
Lima 21 de Octubre del 2015
Carta abierta a su Excelencia
Señor Ollanta Humala Tasso,
Presidente de la República del Perú
Estimado Señor Presidente
Como expertos acreditados en conservación marina, pesquería y otras disciplinas relacionadas, nos dirigimos a
usted a fin de compartir nuestra preocupación y firme recomendación al Perú para que no reduzca sino
fortalezca las reglas de manejo y sistemas de control existentes para la pesquería de anchoveta peruana
durante el evento El Niño que se desarrolla en la actualidad. La información y reportes científicos relevantes
demuestran claramente que permitir la pesca industrial cuando la población de anchoveta está
significativamente baja a causa de El Niño puede ocasionar pérdidas importantes en las capturas pesqueras y,
como resultado, en el empleo e ingresos derivados de esta pesquería así como una reducción en la viabilidad de
las especies del Ecosistema Marino de la Corriente de Humboldt que dependen de la anchoveta.
En la actualidad es evidente que enfrentamos un evento El Niño de magnitud extraordinaria. En el pasado
durante eventos de gran magnitud como el actual la población de anchoveta ha colapsado. Es ahora cuando la
precaución extrema debe guiar las decisiones de manejo pesquero. El reporte técnico presentado
recientemente por el Instituto del Mar del Perú (IMARPE) muestra la seria condición en que se encuentran los
stocks de anchoveta y la penosa necesidad de mantener cerrada la pesquería con el fin de permitir la
recuperación de este recurso en el futuro cercano.
Tomar la decisión equivocada ahora puede traer consecuencias negativas a largo plazo para la pesquería más
importante del Perú y del mundo. Por el contrario, aplicando un criterio precautorio, los impactos de El Niño
sobre el stock de anchoveta pueden ser limitados y de corto plazo.
Durante tiempos de crisis como corresponde a un evento El Niño severo, surgirá una fuerte presión social para
que se relajen las reglas y controles que regulan esta pesquería. Aunque hacerlo puede evitar el desempleo y
disminución de ingresos a corto plazo, los impactos a largo plazo sobre la pesquería y en el empleo e ingresos
relacionados a ella pueden ser muy perjudiciales y dolorosos.
Si bien la pesca de anchoveta aparenta ser abundante e infinita, la realidad es otra y se puede llegar al colapso
con facilidad si no se aplica un manejo científico riguroso durante eventos El Niño y otras situaciones de riesgo
similares. Ignorar la ciencia ahora puede llevar a un desastre no solo para la anchoveta, sino también para el
cuarto de millón de personas que actualmente depende de las pesquerías como medio de vida y para el
creciente movimiento gastronómico peruano que se sustenta en los recursos marinos.
Reconocemos y respetamos las dificultades que encara su gobierno para poder aplicar políticas basadas en la
ciencia ante un escenario complejo y riesgoso como el que enfrentamos ahora. Creemos que los peruanos
merecen tener la oportunidad de disfrutar los beneficios de un océano saludable y productivo que derivarán de
la aplicación de decisiones juiciosas, basadas en la mejor ciencia, que resulten en industrias pesqueras
sostenibles en el futuro cercano.
Agradecemos su consideración frente a esta recomendación.
CC: Presidente del Consejo de Ministros, Pedro Cateriano; Ministro de la Producción, Piero Ghezzi; Ministro
del Ambiente, Manuel Pulgar Vidal, Vice-Ministro de Pesquería, Juan Carlos Requejo

2.
Carta Abierta Presidente O. Humala - 2
Open letter to His Excellence VERSION ORIGINAL EN INGLÉS
Mr. Ollanta Humala Tasso,
President of the Republic of Peru
Dear Mr. President:
As accredited experts on marine conservation, fisheries and related disciplines, we are writing to you
to share our strong recommendation that Peru strengthen rather than relax existing fishery
management rules and control systems for its anchoveta fishery during the current El Niño event.
Relevant data and reports clearly demonstrate that allowing industrial fishing during a significant
reduction in the population of anchovies caused by El Niño is likely to cause severe declines in future
fish catches and, as a result, in the jobs and income generated by this fishery and reduce the viability
of other species in the Humboldt current ecosystem that depend on the anchoveta.
It is now very clear that an extraordinary El Niño event is under way. Past fisheries records indicate
that during El Niño events of a great magnitude the anchoveta population has collapsed.
Consequently, it is now that extreme caution should guide management decisions. The recent
technical report presented by IMARPE reveal the serious condition of anchoveta stocks and the
unfortunate need to keep the fishery closed in order to allow the recovery of this resource in the
near future.
The wrong choice now can have long-term negative consequences for the most important fishery of
Peru and the World. Conversely, applying precautionary criteria, the El Niño impacts on the
anchoveta stock can be limited and short term.
During times of crisis around an El Niño event, there will be strong social pressure to relax these
rules and controls. Although doing so can avoid short-term unemployment and income loss, the long-
term consequences for the fishery and for the related jobs and income could be significantly negative
and painful.
While the anchoveta fishery would appear to be abundant and forever plentiful, it is not – and can
easily collapse if it is not scientifically managed during El Niño’s and other risky times. Ignoring
science now could be a disaster not only for the anchoveta, but also for the quarter of a million
livelihoods that currently depend on fisheries and on the booming seafood-based Peruvian
gastronomic movement.
We recognize and respect the difficulties faced by your government to apply science-based policies
in a complex and risky scenario such as the one described above. We believe Peruvians should have
an opportunity to enjoy the benefits of a healthy and productive ocean which can come from the
application of wise, scientifically based decisions that result in sustainable fisheries industries in the
near future.
We thank you for your consideration of this recommendation.
CC: HE Pedro Cateriano Prime Minister, H.E. Piero Ghezzi Minister of Production, and H.E. Manuel
Pulgar Vidal, Minister of the Environment, H.E. Juan Carlos Requejo, Vice Minister of Fisheries.

3.
Carta Abierta Presidente O. Humala - 3
Dr. Tundi Agardy
Executive Director
Sound Seas
USA
Dr. John P.Y. Arnould
Professor
Deakin University
Australia
Dr. Shankar Aswan
Professor of Fisheries and Human Ecology
Rhodes university
USA
Dr. Peter J. Auster
Research Professor Emeritus of Marine Sciences
University of Connecticut
USA
Dr. C. Scott Baker
Professor
Oregon State University
USA
Jessie Beck
Ecologist
Oikonos Ecosystem Knowledge
Chile
Gabriela Bellazzi
Executive Director
Wild Earth Foundation
USA
Annabelle Bladon
PhD researcher
Imperial College London
UK
Nicolas Lourenço Blanc
Marine Biologist
CCMAR - University of Algarve
Portugal
Dr. P. Dee Boersma
Wadsworth Endowed Chair
Univ. of Washington
USA
Dr. Pablo Borboroglu
Researcher
National Research Council
Argentina
Evan Bowness
PhD Student
University of British Columbia
Canada
Dr. Rodrigo Bustamante
Cientifico Principal
Estación Cientifica Charles Darwin
Ecuador
Dr. Villy Christensen
Professor and Co-Director
UBC Institute for the Oceans and Fisheries
Canada
Dr. John A. Cigliano
Director of Environmental Conservation
Cedar Crest College
and President Marine Section
Society for Conservation Biology
USA
Andrés M. Cisneros-Montemayor
Post-Doctoral Fellow
The University of British Columbia
Canada
Dr. William G. Conway
Past President
Wildlife Conservation Society
USA
Mel Cosentino
Marine mammal expert
Wild Earth Foundation
USA
Dr. R. Cotton Rockwood
Senior Marine Ecologist
Scripps Institution of Oceanography;
Point Blue Conservation Science
USA
Dr. Herbert Curl
Senior Scientist
NOAA - retired
USA
Santiago de la Puente Jeri
Graduate Student
Institute for the Ocean and Fisheries
University of British Columbia
Canada
Luis Delgado Alburqueque
Veterinarian
Ricardo Palma University
Peru
Dr. Antony Diamond
Professor
University of New Brunswick
USA
Dr. David Cameron Duffy
Professor
University of Hawaii
USA
Carla Elliff
PhD student
Universidade Federal da Bahia
Brazil
Dr. Tim Essington
Professor
University of Washington
USA

4.
Carta Abierta Presidente O. Humala - 4
Dr. James A. Estes
Professor
University of California, Santa Cruz
USA
Silvana Fajardo
Specialist Marine Consultant
MINAM
Peru
Dr. Helen E Fox
Senior Director, Research and Monitoring
Rare, Inc.
USA
Dr. Esteban Frere
Coordinador sudamericano del programa marino
BirdLife International
UK
Dr. Rainer Froese
Senior Scientist
GEOMAR Helmholtz-Zentrum für Ozeanforschung
Germany
Dr. Robert Geoffrey Harcourt
Professor of Marine Ecology
Macquarie University, Sydney
Australia
Dr Alasdair Harris
Executive Director
Blue Ventures Conservation
USA
Dr. Marea E. Hatziolos
Senior Marine Resources Specialist
World Bank (retired)
USA
Carmen Heck Franco
Directora de Políticas
Oceana
Peru
Sandra Hervías Parejo
Project Assistant and researcher
Portuguese Society for the Study of Birds
Portugal
Michelle Hester
Executive Director
Oikonos Ecosystem Knowledge
Chile
Dr. Michael Hirshfield
Chief Scientist
Oceana
USA
Dr. Mark Hixon
Professor and
Hsiao Endowed Chair in Marine Biology
University of Hawaii
USA
Dr. Peter J. Hodum
Associate Professor
University of Puget Sound
USA
Dr. David M. Hoffman
Associate Professor
Mississippi State University
USA
Lara Iwanicki
Student
Yale University
USA
Carol A. Keiper
Marine Scientist
Oikonos Ecosystem Knowledge
Chile
Dr. Bernard J. Le Boeuf
Professor Emeritus
University of California, Santa Cruz
USA
Dr. George H. Leonard
Chief Scientist
Ocean Conservancy
USA
Dr. Heather Leslie
Director, Darling Marine Center
and Libra Associate Professor,
School of Marine Sciences
University of Maine
USA
Aimee Leslie
Global Cetacean and
Marine Turtle Programme Manager
WWF International
USA
Rocio Lopez de la Lama
Biologist
Peru
Dr. Jolanda A. Luksenburg
Affiliate Professor in Environmental Science and Policy
George Mason University
USA
Rossana Maguiño Napurí
Biologist
Research
USA
Dr. Patricia Majluf
Vice President
Oceana
Peru
Nele Markones
Marine Biologist
University of Kiel
Germany

5.
Carta Abierta Presidente O. Humala - 5
Dr. Tim McClanahan
Senior Conservation Zoologist
Wildlife Conservation Society
USA
Godfrey Merlen
Independent Scientific Advisor
(Galapagos Islands)
USA
Dr. Fiorenza Micheli
Professor
Stanford University
USA
Dr. E.J. Milner-Gulland
Professor in Biodiversity
University of Oxford
UK
Dr. Rosamond Naylor
Professor of Earth System Science
Stanford University
USA
Dr. Eliott Norse
Chief Scientist
Marine Conservation Institute
USA
Dr. Kathryn Ono
Associate Professor
University of New England
USA
Dr. Ana Parma
Principal Researcher
CONICET
Consejo Argentino de Investigaciones
en Ciencias y Tecnología
Argentina
Dr. Daniel Pauly
Professor of Fisheries
University of British Columbia
Canada
Dr. Hoyt Peckham
Fellow
Center for Ocean Solutions,
Stanford University
USA
Dr. Ellen Pikitch
Professor of Marine Science
Stony Brook University
USA
Dr. Elspeth Probyn
Professor
University of Sydney
Australia
Andrea Raya Rey
Biologist
CADIC-CONICET
Argentina
Dr. Ginger Rebstock
Research Scientist
University of Washington
USA
Juan Carlos Riveros Salcedo
Director Científico
Oceana
Peru
Dr. Callum Roberts
Professor of Marine Conservation
Environment Department University of York
UK
Ana Rodriguez
PhD candidate in Marine sciences
Heriot-Watt University and
St. Andrews University
UK
Jennifer Ross-Jones
Environmental Consultant
USA
Dr George Sangster
Biologist / Researcher
Swedish Museum of Natural History
Sweden
Dr. Jacqueline Savitz
Vice President
Oceana
USA
Dr. Todd Stevenson
Specialist, Cicumpolar Conservation Union
Ocean Conservancy
USA
Dr. Ian Stirling
Adjunct Professor
University of Alberta
Canada
Yorgos Stratoudakis
Fisheries Researcher
IPMA
Portugal
Cristián G. Suazo
Marine Biologist
Albatross Task Force
BirdLife International
UK
Juan Carlos Sueiro Cabredo
Director de Pesquerías
Oceana
Peru
Dr. Rashid Sumaila
Professor of Fisheries
University of British Columbia
Canada

6.
Carta Abierta Presidente O. Humala - 6
Lic. Leandro Luis Tamini
Coordinador Programa Marino - Aves Argentinas
Argentina
Dr. Fritz Trillmich
Professor
University of Bielefeld, Germany
Germany
Fanny Vessaz
Marine Biologist
Naifaru Juvenile
Maldives
Daniele Vila Nova
Reserach Fellow
Universidade Federal de Goiás, Brazil
Brazil
Dr. Amanda Vincent
Professor of Marine Conservation
The University of British Columbia
Canada
Allison Witter
PhD Student
UBC Fisheries Centre
Canada
Anna Milena Zivian
Senior Research Fellow
Ocean Conservancy
USA