Monitoring Fisheries Activities in EEZs of Pacific Island States

Fourth Global Fisheries Enforcement Training Workshop

17th February 2014

Commander Mike Pounder, RAN

FFA Surveillance Operations Officer

Tel: +677 7496262

Email: mike.pounder@ffa.int

FFA Members

KIRIBATI EEZs

Pacific Boundaries

WCPFC / IATTC Boundary

WCPFC Boundary

IATTC Boundary

FFA Members

MCS Resources

Treaties, Agreements and Arrangements

● FFA Harmonised Terms and Conditions

● WCPFC Convention and Conservation Management Measures

● Niue Treaty and Subsidiary Agreements

● US Ship-rider Agreement

● Arrangement for the conduct of High Seas Boarding Inspections

● Te Vaka Moana and Te Vaka Toa Treaties

● Data Sharing Agreements

● Parties to the Nauru Agreement

● US Treaty (Regional Observer Program)

● FSM Arrangement (Regional Observer Program)

● US Agreed Minute

● Multilateral Niue Treaty Subsidiary Agreement

FFA Regional Fisheries Surveillance Centre (RFSC)

● MCS conducted by FFAs RFSC

● Located within Secretariat compound, Honiara

● Manned 7 days/week – not 24/7

● 5 staff

RFSCs MCS Services

● Provide Regional Surveillance Picture (RSP) To FFA members and the QUAD Surveillance Providers

● Compliment FFA members’ MCS efforts

● Alert members of potential illegal activities

● Coordinate Surveillance activities Analyse Contact Reports – disseminate results

● Provide evidentiary support to members

● 4 FFA-led MCS operations each year Host Joint Coordination Centre (JCC)

Regional Surveillance Picture

WCPFC / FFA Data Sharing

FFA Member EEZ FFA Member EEZ

High Seas

WCPFC VMS Contacts in EEZ

WCPFC VMS Contacts in 100NM EEZ Buffer

QUAD Support

Regional MCS Operations

● Operation RAI BALANG

Micronesia

● Operation TUI MOANA

Polynesia

● Operation BIG EYE/ISLAND CHIEF(name alternates)

Micronesia and northern Melanesia

● Operation KURUKURU

All FFA members

Oceania Maritime Surveillance Initiative (OMSI)

Niue Treaty

● The Niue Treaty on Cooperation in Fisheries Surveillance and

Law Enforcement

provides a legally binding framework aimed at enhancing the ability of

Parties to enforce their laws by pooling their resources and cooperating in

surveillance and enforcement.

● Entered into force in May 1993. All FFA members are party to

the Niue Treaty

● Since adoption NTSA’s have been in place between the

following nations, though some have now lapsed:

Tonga & Tuvalu, Cook Is & Samoa, FSM & RMI & Palau, Australia &

PNG, Cook Is & Niue, FSM & Nauru

● Proximity of new multilateral NSTA adoption – shift in focus

Multilateral NTSA

● Overall concept: provides for cooperation in:

cross-vesting of enforcement powers

exchange of fisheries law enforcement data and use of fisheries data for broader law enforcement purposes

● Concepts to enable cooperation: NTSA establishes two concepts to capture these forms of cooperation:

cooperative surveillance and enforcement operations

fisheries data and intelligence

NTSA - Information

● Storing and accessing information: To store and make available the information and authority provided, the NTSA:

creates the Niue Treaty Information System (NTIS) to store and make available notifications

requires that fisheries data and intelligence be stored, managed and made available in the Regional Information Management Facility (RIMF) centred on the Regional Fisheries Surveillance Centre (RFSC)

NTSA - Annexes

● Cross-vesting of powers

● Hot pursuit

● Use of Force

● Immunities

● Cost recovery

● Extension of fisheries policy/law

● Extradition

● Data/intelligence sharing

MCS – the future

● Multi-layered surveillance capability

Satellite, aerial, surface (land & sea), sub-surface

Cost-effective surveillance

● Increasingly complex analysis tools

● Link regional MCS into global MCS effort

● Close MCS data gaps

● Pacific Maritime Security Program

Assets, training & advisors

THANK YOU