CCAMLR

CCAMLR began work to develop a representative system of marine protected areas (MPAs) in 2005. Now in 2014, despite commitment within both the Scientific Committee and the Commission and the concerted effort by CCAMLR Members, significant progress towards implementing a representative system of MPAs has stalled. Furthermore, ASOC has been concerned to see a diminishing scale of ambition for CCAMLR’s representative system of MPAs and marine reserves. ASOC believes that the changes to proposed CCAMLR MPAs over the past several years have reflected a ‘lowest common denominator’ approach to consensus decision-making. The time has come for CCAMLR to move decisively towards meeting its commitment to implement a representative system of MPAs by designating the East Antarctic and Ross Sea MPAs.

There are a number of actions that CCAMLR and its members should implement to improve the governance and control of fishing vessels in the Southern Ocean, thereby enhancing safety, and improving ecosystem-based management and environmental protection. These actions include a mandatory requirement for ice-strengthening for fishing vessels, a two-tier system of training for vessels crews and Masters, and identification of requirements for environmental response and monitoring in the event of an incident. Additionally, CCAMLR should make a commitment to engage fully in the extension of the Polar Code to non-SOLAS vessels including fishing vessels and should inform the IMO of recent incidents involving fishing vessels in the Southern Ocean and developments introduced by CCAMLR.

CCAMLR has previously recognized the importance of considering climate change impacts when making management decisions. However, to date this has not been explicitly incorporated in most working papers, even though climate change and ocean acidification are relevant to a wide range of policy decisions. Government bodies often require the inclusion of similar statements to be included with the submission of new or revised legislation or regulations when an issue has relevance to a broad spectrum of decisions. ASOC therefore recommends that CCAMLR adopt a resolution urging Members to include a climate change implications statement in their working papers and fisheries reports. This text could also be appended to Resolution 30/XXVIII.

Policymakers and marine managers are increasingly using MPAs and marine reserves to achieve better conservation outcomes for marine areas. As these areas grow in number, it is important to analyze whether they are in fact achieving their desired outcomes and what factors led to their success. One major study published this year identified five characteristics of MPAs that achieved statistically significant outcomes on fish population metrics, including: “no take, well enforced, old (>10 years), large (>100km²) and isolated by deep water or sand” (Edgar et al. 2014). Two analyses of New Zealand’s system of marine reserves, which has now been in place for several decades, indicate unexpected benefits for scientists and scientific research. NZ’s no-take reserves have effectively served as “control” areas without which researchers would not have been able to draw fully informed conclusions. CCAMLR should consider these findings as they discuss the current Ross Sea and East Antarctica proposals, as well as future MPA proposals, to ensure that Southern Ocean MPAs will likewise achieve their desired conservation and scientific outcomes.

The stock of Antarctic toothfish (D. mawsoni) in CCAMLR subarea 48.4 was estimated from tagging returns to be 1,027 tonnes during the  2013/14 season. In previous years the harvest rate used for Patagonian toothfish (D. eleginoides) in Subarea 48.3 (γ = 0.038) has been used as a precautionary harvest rate which would imply a 2014/15 yield of 35 tonnes compared to the 2013/14 TAC of 24 tonnes.
 

In June 2014, the ICED programme, the British Antarctic Survey and WWF co-hosted a two day workshop entitled “Understanding the objectives for krill fishing and conservation in the Scotia Sea and Antarctic Peninsula region” which involved participants from the science, conservation, and fishing industry sectors.  The workshop used structured dialogue, led by an independent facilitator, to explore each sector’s objectives and information requirements for the krill‐based ecosystem and to identify constructive ways for the three sectors to work together. The issue of krill-fishing has previously provoked passionate debate but participants in this workshop showed broad cross-sector accord. This included shared commitment to maintaining a healthy ecosystem and support for management of the krill fishery that minimises the risk of negative impacts on ecosystem health. Participants generally agreed that current levels of fishing have a low risk of significant impacts but that there is no need to increase catch limits.  Participants also agreed that the objectives of management must include a healthy krill stock and a healthy ecosystem. However, they were not able to define ecosystem states that are desirable or healthy. This reflects the gaps in the currently available information and the indirect nature of the links between the krill-based ecosystem and human well being. The workshop produced a range of recommendations including the need to articulate a clear research and development strategy to support progress in the management of the krill fishery; and to improve communication between The Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) and its stakeholders. The workshop also revealed a cooperative and productive relationship between the various sectors. Further cross-sector work could progress some key tasks such as identifying priority information requirements and assessing the potential future demand for krill catch.

Sampling methods to determine the composition and nature of the catch of the longlining fishery around CCAMLR Subarea 48.3 have, to date, been limited to in situ line observations conducted by CCAMLR observers deployed on the fishing fleet. The collection of this data is important for the assessment and management of the fishery. This independent estimation of the total catch in the fishery requires considerable effort and cost with mixed results.  For example it is not always possible to achieve a reasonable figure/rate of line observation for each setting of the lines. A video recording system was installed on a longliner targeting toothfish in CCAMLR Subarea 48.3. This system provided 100% of coverage of all setting and hauling activities on this vessel. It proved to be reliable, easy to set up by the observer/crew and does not require structural modifications on the vessel. Fishing events were divided in settings and hauling operations where at-sea observations were matched with video footage recorded then divided into sessions termed ‘slots’. During settings, 284,800 hooks distributed in 31 slots totalling 31 hours and 57 minutes were observed and recorded. For hauling, a total of 53,403 hooks were randomly selected and observed at sea. The total amount of video footage recorded during these observations was 40 hours and 42 minutes, divided into 62 slots. Data gathered from at-sea observations conducted by a scientific observer was compared with recorded video footage recorded by 3 different video reviewers watching the video footage. No significant differences were found in the number of all species of vertebrate counted in situ and in the video footage by the different video reviewers (observers). However catch composition for invertebrates showed high discrepancy between in situ and footage observations.