MARCH 2023 l VOL 72 ISSUE 2
worldfishing.net
Viewpoint 3 | Insight 12 | Opinion 17 | Fishing Technology 22 | Analysis 24
IOTC CRACKS DOWN ON TUNA FADs
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NEW HORIZONS
8 A rise in FAD use has led to increased scrutiny of their impact on marine ecosystems
proposal that sought to reduce their use, it has criticised the IOTC meeting for adopting the closure measure without consensus, saying that it lacks scientific basis and could prove impossible to implement, in addition to having extremely harsh impacts on fishers and local communities. Ahead of the meeting, a letter signed by retailers and more than 100 environmental groups warned EU officials that FADs are one of the main contributors to overfishing of yellowfin tuna in the Indian Ocean, because they catch high numbers of juveniles. It was also highlighted that yellowfin tuna has been overfished in the Indian Ocean since 2015 and that the region’s bigeye tuna has been assessed as overfished. More IOTC reactions – page 4.
PRESIDENT PROTECTS ALASKA SALMON A Final Determination has been issued by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) under the Clean Water Act to help protect Bristol Bay, regarded as the world’s most productive wild salmon ecosystem. With this action, the Biden-Harris Administration is protecting certain waters that are important to sustaining Southwest Alaska’s salmon resources from disposal of dredged or fill materials associated with developing the Pebble Mine deposit. “The Bristol Bay watershed is a vital economic driver, providing jobs, sustenance, and significant ecological and cultural value to the region,” EPA
We SPECIALIS
Photo Credit: IOTC
The use of fish aggregating devices (FADs) in the Indian Ocean will be increasingly restricted after an agreement was hammered out by fishing nations at a Special Session of the Indian Ocean Tuna Commission (IOTC). Held in February in Mombasa, Kenya, the three-day Special Session was called due to inaction by the ITOC’s 33 parties with regards to FAD management. These devices, which are used by purse-seine fleets, are criticised by coastal nations and conservation groups for contributing to overfishing and causing damage to marine ecosystems and harm to non-target species. The proposal on drifting FADs was adopted by a two-thirds majority following a vote by secret ballot in the final hours of the meeting. Coming into effect from 1 January 2024 will be a phased reduction in the number of drifting FADs permitted per vessel from 300 to 250 in the first year and then down to 200 in 2025. Also mandated was the creation of a drifting FAD registry, allowing for increased transparency and monitoring of the manmade devices. A 72-day closure period for drifting FADs was also put in place. However, the adopted proposal hasn’t been well received by the European Union, which is the single biggest harvester of tuna in the Indian Ocean. According to IOTC data, the distant-water fleet of EU vessels, mainly Spanish- and Frenchowned, harvested 243,001 tonnes of tuna in the Indian Ocean in 2021. While the European Commission is supportive of FAD management and had submitted a
Administrator Michael Regan said. “With this action, EPA is advancing its commitment to help protect this one-of-a-kind ecosystem, safeguard an essential Alaskan industry, and preserve the way of life for more than two dozen Alaska Native villages.” The total economic value, including subsistence uses of the Bristol Bay watershed’s salmon resources, was estimated at more than US$2.2 billion in 2019 and results in 15,000 jobs annually. Bristol Bay Watershed is home to 25 Alaska native villages and communities and supports one of the last intact, sustainable salmon-based cultures in the world.
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NEWBUILDS
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AQUACULTURE
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