Cover Story
Fishing For Answers
Tuna Commission Establishment Not A Minute Too Soon
| Jargon, science and the ubiquitous powerpoint presentation made for hard
work for the layman observer at the Meeting of the Standing Committee on
Tuna and Billfish that brought together more than 60 fisheries experts in
Majuro, Marshall Islands in late August. But it is also important work,
given this group of scientists and fisheries officials is responsible for
producing most of the research on which stock assessments for the Pacific
are based. And those assessments are producing some sobering information
about the future of the Pacific fishery, showing that a new regulatory body
that is to control fishing on the high seas has its work cut out. Distant
water fishing nations active in the Pacific, and taking the vast balance
of profits (an estimated 95 per cent) from Pacific tuna fisheries, include
Japan, Korea, Taiwan, China, the USA, Philippines and the European Union.
"Our fishery is the most targeted and important area compared to other oceans,"
said fisheries expert Dr. John Hampton of the Secretariat of the Pacific
Community (SPC). "We must prepare for what could happen…in light of what's
happened in other oceans."
Scientists and researchers are sounding alarms about two major tuna species: bigeye and yellowfin. The former is already being over-fished, while the latter is at "maximum exploitation" and needs to see a reduction in catches to maintain a healthy stock. The experts are echoing what local subsistence fishermen and processing operations have been saying for some time, that catches are down. For example, while the Central Bank of Samoa's most recent foreign trade report showed strong growth in fresh fish exports (up 25 percent to $2.2 million in August), this follows problems in the industry which saw the government ask Samoa's Development Bank to forgo fishermen's loan repayments for the year to March 2004. - ADVERTISEMENT - The new Tuna Commission headquartered in Pohnpei, Federated States of Micronesia will come into being next month with the job of regulating fishing on the high seas and facilitating regional monitoring and cooperation projects. The Convention for the Conservation and Management of Highly Migratory Fish Stocks in the Western and Central Pacific came into force on June 19. Currently, the Pacific Islands Forum Fisheries Agency (PIFFA) and the island member nations control access to the 200-mile exclusive economic zones. But a high percentage of tuna, in particular yellowfin tuna caught by longliners, is taken in high seas areas (in what's widely known as "doughnut holes") that, until the coming into force of the new management agreement, have been totally unregulated.
While concern has already been raised about the current level of fishing by Asian and United States fishing fleets, Hampton points out that other fishing fleets from Europe are now expressing interest in fishing in the region, "a development that will put further pressure on Pacific stocks. "Bigeye (tuna) is emerging as a management problem," Hampton says. Fishing fleets' practice of catching younger fish is impacting the health of bigeye stocks in the region, he says. Yellowfin tuna, however, is now being "fully exploited"; a term that means any increase in the current level of catches could begin to seriously diminish the yellowfin stocks in the region. Yellowfin is prized for the fresh sashimi market. "There is no room for further increases in catches of yellowfin," Hampton says bluntly. He also points out that one of the problems in determining the actual catch level is the reliability of data provided by the different countries that are fishing. Environmental organization Greenpeace claims assessments on bigeye and yellowfin stocks "understate the problem because they used out of date data, that did not include the large increases in fishing due to the influx of Taiwanese owned purse seiners." These myriad challenges-multiple fishing methods, the heavy economic interests of Asian and other fishing nations, under-reporting of fish catches and relatively little enforcement capability of most island countries - make tuna regulation in the region extremely difficult. The new Tuna Commission's success "will stand or fall on the vessel monitoring system (VMS)," Hampton says. VMS, which monitors the position, speed and direction of foreign fishing vessels, is now a requirement of access to the region. The VMS equipment located on each vessel, transmits data on the vessel's location via satellite to the Pacific Islands Forum Fisheries Agency and then to individual member countries. However Kiribati continues to question the viability and effectiveness of the system, because they have been trialing an alternative, and on the grounds of reliability and cost. The PIFFA recently called for a review of VMS. The success of the commission will also hinge on the participation of the private sector. Pacific Islands Forum Secretary General Greg Urwin has pointed to the importance of stronger alliances between governments and their domestic fishing industries. "It might be fair to say that there was inadequate involvement of the private sector in…(the Convention's) development…in contrast there was active involvement by the fishing industries of the distant water fishing nations in those negotiations," Urwin says. James Movick, an FSM operator who was recently named as chairman of the Regional Tuna Association, says any measurements designed to ensure the conservation and sustainable management of the stocks must include "a sustained dialogue with the industry." Movich believes there is a problem with the increasing number of Flag of Convenience (FOC) purse seiners. "Those which are of Taiwanese construction and ownership, which are seeking to get admission into the region to fish through FOC arrangements and puppet front companies engaged with Micronesian or other Pacific islanders… it is one area of great concern, because some of these vessels that are being built, they are trying to get flagged in island countries are very big, very efficient, very modern vessels. And the effect on the fishery resources could be quite devastating." Movick is also keen to see Indonesia and Philippines engage in the tuna commission process, saying fisheries there are a traditional but unregulated activity that affects the spawning area for skipjack and yellow fin. The Tuna Commission, though not yet established, is already confronted with rising demand for diminishing bigeye and yellowfin tuna stocks. How it and its members respond to this, and to the tactics of distant water fishing nations when they eventually come to the table at the Commission, will determine the health of Pacific tuna resources far into the future. Movick at least, seems cautiously optimistic about the new Commission. "It is something where this region has taken the lead in the world and I think its something that I think we should be rather proud of."
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