The effort to conserve tuna stocks in the Pacific is not just a burden shouldered by Pacific islands nations, although much has been said about moves to save fish resources from imminent depletion, as has happened in other ocean regions.

No doubt a big step forward for members of the Pacific Islands Forum Fisheries Agency (FFA) is the endorsement of the new Conservation and Management Measures (CMMs) at last month’s 5th regular session of the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission (WCPFC) in Busan, South Korea.

The intention of these CMMs is to reduce the amount of fish caught in the Pacific especially bigeye and yellowfin tuna. Scientific evidence had reportedly shown that these species were endangered and need to be saved, hence the WCPFC chair’s proposal to cut down on their fishing.

But in the Busan meeting, the distant water fishing nations (DWFNs), who hold as much power in Pacific fisheries as regional fishing nations, showed that they too had much to lose if Pacific tuna population were to collapse.

Despite being the brunt of brackish criticism from environment group Greenpeace, the DWFNs generally lent support for the WCPFC chair’s new CMMs, among which was the cutdown of longline fishing by 30 percent over three years and the closure of high seas pockets. 

In their presentations at the Korea meeting, the DWFNs were able to demonstrate to Pacific nations that they too were taking measures to assist towards the conservation of fish stocks.

Philippines, for instance, told the session that it strongly supported the proposed rational use of Fish Aggregating Devices (FAD) but that it was itself already developing its own management plan regarding FAD, which included “limiting FADs deployment from 100 units to 25 units per vessel, and the removal of excess FADs”.

“We are developing a programme to reduce our Bigeye tuna catch by 30 percent.

”In fact, we stopped issuing new licenses for catchers since 2004 and we intend to keep this,” Philippines informed the Busan meeting.

Taiwan, a big fishing partner in the region, also revealed the work it was doing back home to strengthen its own regulatory machineries.

“Among the work we have done, the one worth highlighting this year (2008) is a bill drafted to require nationals who intend to operate foreign flag fishing vessels on the high seas to acquire prior approval from the fisheries authorities.

This bill has just been adopted by our parliament.

“The bill also requires nationals who operate foreign flag vessels to observe the relevant international conservation and management measures in force, violations of which may be liable to criminal prosecution,” it said.

“We believe that with these new regulations, the Fisheries Agency is equipped with an effective tool to ensure compliance of our nationals with the conservation and management measures adopted by our government and the Regional Fisheries Management Organisations.”

Taiwan further touched on a nerve sensitive to Pacific islands members of WCPFC—the issue of fishing capacity and aspirations of developing islands nations in the development of their fisheries.

“We have been criticised of indulging our people in expanding fishing capacity in the region. To prevent expansion of fishing capacity, we have established the Regulation on Permission for the Export of Fishing Vessels, to regulate building of foreign flag fishing vessels in our shipyards.

“We must emphasise that this regulation is in no way intended to discourage the aspiration of developing islands nations in the development of their fisheries.” 

Taiwan, a popular boat-building country and vessel source for most Pacific islands nations, had been accused in the past of hindering the desire of small islands states to acquire fishing vessels for their fleet by having such a regulation in place.

Insisting that this was not the case, Taiwan urged the WCPFC to “have guidelines to the extent of the fisheries developments of developing islands nations in order that both their aspirations and fishing capacity can be adequately addressed.”

Japan, another big fishing nation in Pacific waters, said its fishing authority was engaged in accurately assessing the actual amount of Bigeye bycatch from its purse seiners, who land all their catches on Japanese ports.

While these DWFNs generally supported the CMMs proposed by the WCPFC or the Tuna Commission as it is more commonly known, they also expressed reservations at the viability of some measures.

Korea, in particular, vigorously opposed the proposed closure of high sea pockets.

In the end, however, this was a meeting considered a victory for the Pacific islands states, although environmentalists saw it as a ‘total failure’.

“I am a bit disappointed with the commentary of the environmental NGOs on the issue,” said Anouk Ride, media liaison officer for the Forum Fisheries Agency, a representative organisation for the Pacific islands members of the Tuna Commission.

“The Pacific islands had a huge victory in getting Korea to agree to the high seas pockets closure and the other Asian nations to all the other provisions of the PNA (Parties to the Nauru Agreement), yet they are describing it as a ‘failed commission’.

Having dealt with fishing negotiations for a number of years in Africa and Latin America, this is the biggest success I have seen for developing countries advancing their agenda at an international commission, unprecedented in fishing commissions certainly and possibly other international environmental organisations as well,” said Ride.

At the end of the Busan session, the new conservation measures that were adopted and which would start this year were:

• A cut of 10 percent in longline fishing;

• Closure of the high seas and Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZs) to fishing using Fish Aggregating Devices (FADs) for two months this year and three months next year (July-September);

• Prohibition of purse seine fishing vessels from throwing juvenile fish back to sea;

• Agreement to close two high sea pockets from January next year; and

• Future 100 percent coverage of purse seine fishing vessels with observers.