CCAMLR

Notification of China’s intent to conduct krill fishing in 2012/13

Notification of Germany’s intent to conduct krill fishing in 2012/13

Notification of Japan’s intent to conduct krill fishing in 2012/13

Notification of Korea’s intent to conduct krill fishing in 2012/13

Notification of Norway’s intent to conduct krill fishing in 2012/13

Notification of Poland’s intent to conduct krill fishing in 2012/13

Notification of Ukraine’s intent to conduct krill fishing in 2012/13

The Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) is widely recognised as a leading international organisation in developing best-practice in the ecosystem approach to managing fisheries.  CCAMLR provides a useful case study for examining the impediments to implementing ecosystem-based fisheries management (EBFM) because it has EBFM principles embedded within its convention rather than having to make a transition from single-species management to an ecosystem approach.  CCAMLR is demonstrating that EBFM does not need to equate to complexity in management and that methods can be developed to decide on spatial management strategies for fisheries so that predators of target species are not disproportionately affected as a result of spatial and/or temporal dependencies of predators on their prey.  Science has an important role in implementing EBFM, not only in measuring and assessing the status of target species and their predators, but also in designing cost-effective management strategies and in resolving disputes.  Importantly, attention needs to be given to developing the capability and tools to overcome differences amongst scientists in providing advice to managers.  The CCAMLR experience suggests that voluntary participation by fishing States in CCAMLR and its consensus environment without adequate safeguards do not provide strong foundations for achieving, in the long term, the ecosystem-based principles for managing fisheries when there is any degree of scientific uncertainty.  Some solutions to these issues are discussed.  Overall, broader-than-CCAMLR solutions amongst the international community as well as the continued commitment of CCAMLR Members will be required to resolve these issues.

The first Workshop for developing MPAs in the Domain 1 was held at Valparaiso, Chile, between 28 May and 1 June. At the workshop assisted delegates from 6 countries plus a number of NGOs and representatives from the fishing industry.

Main outcomes of the Workshop were: an agreement on sharing data layers for conducting the analysis; a concerted list of conservation objectives to be included in the analyses; a review of existing and missing data; a definition of the cost-layer to be included; a recommendation on the analysis and software to be used for aiding to identify priority areas for conservation. Examples of already defined conservation objects and data layers are presented.

During the discussions it was realized that some conservation objectives had a direct relationship with the feedback management strategy. Accordingly, these issues were derived to the WG-EMM for discussion.

Finally, the group decided on the coming steps for keep developing on the MPA.

Managing fisheries to achieve ecosystem objectives is in its infancy. A general approach for maintaining ecological relationships and providing for the recovery of depleted populations in food webs supporting fisheries is proposed. This paper addresses the following general questions for taking the ecosystem approach in managing fisheries: (i) how might fisheries impact incidentally on an ecosystem, (ii) what should be the conservation objectives for predators of fished species, and (iii) what approaches could be considered for achieving the conservation objectives?  The approach proposed here takes account of uncertainties in knowledge of the structure of ecosystems.  Estimates of production arising from fished species (encapsulated in proposed indices P and W) potentially provide useful indicators for management purposes because they integrate across a range of “ecosystem” effects and, as formulated here, can also be related directly to the effects of fishing.  These features are currently unavailable in ecosystem approaches to managing fisheries.  The paper elaborates the steps required to establish management procedures based on these indices.