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ta B l e 2 1 . 4 Main features and statistics of the Agreement for the Establishment of the Indian Ocean Tuna Commission—implemented by the Indian Ocean Tuna Commission

Feature Description

Commencement date 27 March 1996

Objective To promote cooperation among its members with a view to ensuring, through appropriate management, the conservation and optimum utilisation of stocks covered by the agreement and encouraging sustainable development of fisheries based on such stocks

Membership Members: 28Cooperating non-contracting parties: 3

Species covered under the management mandate

Tuna: albacore tuna (Thunnus alalunga)a , bigeye tuna (Thunnus obesus)a, bullet tuna (Auxis rochei), frigate tuna (Auxis thazard), kawakawa (Euthynnus affinis), longtail tuna (Thunnus tonggol)a, skipjack tuna (Katsuwonus pelamis)a, southern bluefin tuna (Thunnus maccoyii)a, yellowfin tuna (Thunnus albacares)a

Mackerel: Indo-Pacific king macherel (Scomberomorus guttatus), narrow-barred Spanish mackerel (Scomberomorus commersoni)Marlin: black marlin (Makaira indica), Indo-Pacific blue marlin (Makaira mazara), striped marlin (Tetrapturus audax)a

Sailfish: Indo-Pacific sailfish (Istiophorus platypterus)Swordfish: broadbill swordfish (Xiphias gladius)a

Fishing methods Purse seinePelagic longlineMinor line (handline, rod and reel, troll and poling)Gillnets

Primary landing ports Industrial: Seychelles, Thailand, MauritiusArtisanal: numerous

Management methods Input controls: fishing capacity

Harvest strategy None

Consultative forums Commission; Scientific Committee; working parties on tropical tunas, fishing capacity, billfish, data collection and statistics, neritic tunas, temperate tunas, ecosystems and bycatch

Main markets Japan—fresh, frozen

Commonwealth fisheries involved

Western Tuna and Billfish Fishery (see Chapter 25)Western Skipjack Fishery (see Chapter 23)

Fishery statisticsb 2007 calendar year 2008 calendar year

Estimated total catch 1 433 947 t 1 387 421 t

Authorised vessels Industrial: 3675 fishing and/or carrier vessels (2471 greater than 24 m)

Industrial: 3575 fishing and/or carrier vessels (2289 greater than 24 m)

Active vesselsc Industrial: 3907 fishing and/or carrier vessels (1737 greater than 24 m, 794 unknown length)Artisanald: tens of thousands

Industrial: 4036 fishing and/or carrier vessels(1670 greater than 24 m, 793 unknown length)Artisanal: tens of thousands

Value of production >US$3 billion >US$3 billion

a Species considered as important targets or byproduct for Commonwealth fisheries. Southern bluefin tuna managed by CCSBT

b Fishery statistics provided by calendar year unless otherwise indicated; data for 2009 are not available from the secretariat until late in 2010

c The number of active vessels is higher than the number authorised to fish because vessels from Chinese Taipei cannot be authorised due to regulations of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations

d Artisanal vessels are those of length less than 24 m that fish within the EEZ of an Indian Ocean coastal state.

SOURCE: Gillett & Herrera (2010).

c h a p t e r 2 1 International fishery management arrangements 369

half the catch. In 2008 gillnets accounted for 36% of the catch, purse seine 30% and longline 15%. Most catch (60–70%) comes from the western Indian Ocean (Fig. 21.7). The Australian catch in both the Western Tuna and Billfish Fishery and the Western Skipjack Fishery is very small relative to the entire IOTC catch (see Chapters 23 and 25).

The IOTC Scientific Committee uses the reference points of BMSY

and FMSY in providing its advice on stock status; species with biomass estimates <BMSY are considered overfished, and fishing mortality >FMSY is considered overfishing. There are currently no agreed harvest strategies, explicit limit reference points or decision rules that are followed when reference points are reached.

The performance review of the IOTC (Anon 2009) included a review of the IOTC agreement and noted that a major weakness was that it did not explicitly include concepts such as the precautionary approach and ecosystem-based approach to fisheries management. In terms of management performance, the review noted that the limited quantitative data provided for many stocks was contributing to the high levels of uncertainty in the assessments of stock status. This is suggested to be due to lack of compliance with IOTC resolutions and also the limited information available for artisanal fisheries, which take a large part

The IOTC is an intergovernmental organisation established under Article XIV of the constitution of the United Nations (UN) Food and Agriculture Organization. It is mandated to manage tuna and tuna-like species in the Indian Ocean and adjacent seas (Table 21.4). The IOTC area of competence (Fig. 21.6) covers a large number of countries and both artisanal and industrial fishing vessels. Membership of the IOTC is open to any Indian Ocean coastal country, and countries or regional economic integration organisations that are members of the UN or one of its specialised agencies that actively fish for tunas in the Indian Ocean. The IOTC is responsible for the world’s second largest tuna fishery, by both volume and value (Table 21.4). In 2008 the total tuna catch of the fishery was worth in excess of US$3 billion and contributed 24% of the global tuna catch. The Indian Ocean differs from the other oceans in that artisanal fisheries take almost as much as industrial fisheries. In catches of coastal countries (except for the Maldives, Sri Lanka and Indonesia), neritic species predominate, while the distant water fishing nations target tropical and temperate oceanic tunas and, to a lesser extent, swordfish. Since 1992 the total IOTC catch of tuna and tuna-like species has been more than 1 million t, peaking at 1.66 million t in 2006. Skipjack (31% of the 2008 catch) and yellowfin tuna (22%) make up more than

Fish market, dried products PHOTO: DAVID WILSON, ABARE –BRS

Juvenile tuna, South-east Asia market PHOTO: KATHRYN READ, DEWHA

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delayed until 1 July 2010, to allow member states to develop national programs. For vessels under 24 m fishing outside their EEZ, the required coverage should be achieved progressively by January 2013.Resolution 09/05—to prohibit the use of •large-scale driftnets on the high seas in the IOTC area. The Commission prohibited the use of large-scale driftnets (>2.5 km in length) on the high seas of the IOTC convention area. The resolution also prohibited vessels configured to fish using large-scale driftnets. The resolution does not extend to the EEZ of member states.Resolution 09/06—on marine turtles. •In recognition of the threatened status of the populations of the six marine turtle species found in the Indian Ocean, and the adverse impacts that fishing operations have on turtles, the Commission adopted measures to improve the data on marine turtle interactions, and ensure the use of best handling practices to improve the levels of survival of turtles returned to the sea after capture.

In addition, the Commission adopted an arrangement between the IOTC and the Secretariat for the Agreement for Albatrosses and Petrels to promote cooperation between the two organisations to enhance the conservation of albatrosses and petrels in the IOTC area. The objective of this cooperation is to support efforts to minimise the incidental bycatch of albatrosses and petrels within the IOTC convention area.

of the catch. In 2009 the Commission took steps towards rectifying these deficiencies by adopting a resolution that would strengthen the effectiveness of the IOTC.

conservation and management measures At each annual session of the IOTC, the Commission makes resolutions concerning the conservation and management of tuna and tuna-like species under its mandate (Table 21.4). These resolutions are binding on all members of the Commission. In 2009 the IOTC adopted six new resolutions (the details of which can be found on the IOTC website—www.iotc.org):

Resolution 09/01—on the performance •review follow-up. The Commission adopted a resolution that takes the first steps to progress the recommendations in the Report of the IOTC Performance Review Panel: January 2009 (Anon 2009a), with the aim of strengthening the effectiveness of the IOTC.Resolution 09/02—on the implementation •of a limitation of fishing capacity of contracting parties and cooperating non-contracting parties. The Commission strengthened its measures for the management of fishing capacity for tropical tuna, swordfish and albacore tuna stocks. Resolution 09/03—on establishing a •list of vessels presumed to have carried out illegal, unregulated and unreported fishing in the IOTC area. In an attempt to eliminate illegal, unregulated and unreported (IUU) fishing, the Commission adopted a resolution that enables vessels flagged to members to be included on the List of IUU Vessels.Resolution 09/04—on a regional observer •scheme. The Commission put in place a program comprising national observer schemes to collect verified catch data and other scientific data related to the fisheries for tuna and tuna-like species in the IOTC convention area. The resolution requires at least 5% coverage of the number of operations/sets for each gear type by fleet of 24 m and over, and under 24 m if fishing outside a member’s EEZ. The commencement of the resolution was

Yellowfin tuna PHOTO: DAVID WILSON, ABARE –BRS

c h a p t e r 2 1 International fishery management arrangements 371

F i g u r e 2 1 .7 Relative catch levels of key target species reported in the IOTC, 2008

EEZ = Exclusive Economic Zone; FAO = Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations; IOTC = Indian Ocean Tuna Commission

Yellowfin tuna processing, Indonesia PHOTO: DAVID WILSON, ABARE –BRS

Yellowfin tuna processing, Indonesia PHOTO: DAVID WILSON, ABARE –BRS

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2 1 . 5 c o m m i s s i o n F o r t h e c o n s e rvat i o n o F a n ta r c t i c m a r i n e l i v i n g r e s o u r c e s

F i g u r e 2 1 . 8 Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) area of competence and reported toothfish catches, 2008–09

EEZ = Exclusive Economic Zone; SSRU = small scale research unit

Austral leader PHOTO: JAY HENDER, ABARE –BRSHauling in toothfish catch PHOTO: AFMA

c h a p t e r 2 1 International fishery management arrangements 373

ta B l e 2 1 . 5 Main features and statistics of the Convention for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources

Feature Description

Commencement date July 1982

Membership Members: 25Non-member contracting parties: 9

Species covered under the management mandate

All living marine resources, with the exception of seals and whales.Key species for Australia:Patagonian toothfish (Dissostichus eleginoides)a

Antarctic toothfish (Dissostichus mawsoni)a

Mackerel icefish (Champsocephalus gunnari)a

Fishing methods TrawlDemersal longlinePots

Primary landing ports Port Louis (Mauritius), Albany (Australia), Nelson (New Zealand), Capetown (South Africa), Port Stanley (Falkland Islands), Montevideo (Uruguay), Vigo (Spain)

Management methods Output controls: fishery-dependent TACs

Harvest strategy Fishery specific

Consultative forums Commission; Scientific Committee; Working Group on Incidental Mortality Associated with Fishing; Working Group on Fish Stock Assessment; Working Group on Ecosystem Monitoring and Management; Working Group on Statistics, Assessments and Modelling

Main markets United States, Japan—toothfishEastern Europe—icefishUnited States, Europe—krill

Commonwealth fisheries involved Antarctic Waters Fishery (see Chapter 26)Heard Island and McDonald Islands Fishery (see Chapter 27) Macquarie Island Toothfish Fishery (see Chapter 28)

Fishery statisticsb 2007–08 financial year 2008–09 financial year

Estimated total catch 174 803 t 138 909 t

Authorised vessels 44 vessels (61 licences) from 15 flag states 37 vessels (55 licences) from 12 flag states

Active vessels Not available Not available

Value of production Not available Not available

a Species considered as important targets or byproduct for Commonwealth fisheries

b Fishery statistics provided by financial year

The CCAMLR was established to conserve and manage the Southern Ocean Antarctic ecosystem, mainly in high-seas areas. It originally stemmed from concern over fishing for krill (Euphausia superba) and the effects on the broader Antarctic ecosystem. The convention’s objective is the conservation and rational use of Antarctic marine living resources. In managing fisheries within its area of competence (Fig. 21.8), the CCAMLR uses harvest strategies that specifically incorporate ecological links in setting TACs. Such an approach views the entire Southern Ocean as

a suite of interlinked ecological systems; this approach distinguishes the CCAMLR from the multilateral fisheries conventions. The strategies result in conservative TACs that aim to reduce the potential impact of fishing on other species, such as predators of the target species. There is also a focus on mitigating impacts on the benthic environment and bycatch, particularly of seabirds. Fisheries in the CCAMLR region are required to have high levels of observer coverage and data collection and reporting, and there are specific requirements for new or exploratory fisheries.