PACIFIC ISLANDS FISHERY NEWS Newsletter of the Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council / Winter 2023 ISSN 2151-2329 (PRINT) ISSN 2151-2337 (ONLINE)
Climate Change in the Western Pacific:
Where to Now?
Pago Pago harbor in American Samoa showing infrastructure supported on the shoreline and the nearby coastal mountains. Photo: Wikipedia Commons/Iseulaolemoana.
Across the globe, climate change is altering the way people look at the world. Adjusting to shifts in economic drivers are now the norm, as access to natural resources becomes more limited and coastal infrastructure is often diminished. Many nations experiencing the impacts of climate change are responding by relocating to inland areas and identifying new target resources. However, for island nations in the Western Pacific, land and resources are limited. Without the ability to move inland, perform indigenous and cultural practices, and/ or pursue traditional food sources through local fisheries and agriculture, many of these Pacific Island nations have nowhere to turn. The Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council has jurisdiction over the federal waters of Hawaiʻi, American Samoa, Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas
Islands and the U.S. Pacific Remote Island Areas. The impli cations of climate change affect these islands in the Western Pacific with a higher degree of severity when compared to other regions in the world, such as the continental United States (Figure 1, see page 3). For example, in American Samoa, climate-related changes are being observed through increased ocean temperatures and acidity, shifts in species distributions and ocean currents, reduced nutrient levels, and most immedi ately devastating, rises in sea level. Infrastructure in American Samoa is extremely vulnerable to sea level rise due to the steep terrain of its islands and relatively narrow coastlines. The situation is worsened by the recently recognized rapid sinking of the islands, triggered by the 2009 Samoa earthquake and predicted to last for decades. This subsidence is estimated to lead to roughly twice as much sea level rise by 2060 as what was CONTINUED ON PAGE 2
TROLL ON IN TO THIS ISSUE 1 Climate Change in the Western Pacific: Where to Now?
8 Large-Scale MPAs Have Limited Conservation Benefits for Pacific Tropical Tunas According to New Study
12 Council Family Updates
4 193rd Council Meeting Highlights, December 5-8, 2022
10 New DLNR Chief in the CNMI Administration
5 Scientists Work With Fishermen to Understand Bottomfish Data
10 Revetment Work Begins at the Garapan Fishing Base
14 Summary of Action Items at the March 2023 Council Meeting
6 Positive Outcomes from International Fisheries Commission Meeting Lead to Optimism in 2023
11 Get to Know Your Council Members: Shaelene Kamaka‘ala 12 Congressional Corner
13 Meet Your Council Advisory Panel Leadership
15 Recipe: Seafood Miso Soup with Dipping Sauce 16 2023 Council Calender 16 Upcoming Events