Fisheries Workshop

Experience of RFMOs in addressing impacts of bottom fisheries on VMEs and the long-term sustainability of

deep- sea fish stocks

Industry Representative: R. ShottonExecutive Secretary

Southern Indian Ocean Deepsea Fishers Association

SIODFA

What is SIODFA?• Austral Fisheries Pty• Kanai Fisheries• ORAFCO• Sealord Group

• Started in 2006 because of failure of signatories to ratify SIOFA

• Lobby for ratification of SIOFA• Implemented 1st ‘industry’ high-seas benthic

protected areas• Undertake conservation and management

measures• Open to relevant companies who support our

objectives.Port States

Markets & Processing Crews

What to do in the absence of a RFMO?

• Members record complete tow-by-tow data

• Impact Assessments – e.g. SIODFA Technical Report 08/04: Characteristics of SIODFA Vessels Operating in the Southern Indian Ocean Deep-sea Trawl Fisheries

• Our vessels have SIMRAD ES60 acoustic systems to assess stocks and collect resource management/ bycatch (sharks and benthos) data

• Conservation measure to cap fleet capacity– 1 vessel/company

• Assessment working groups to support SIOFA - when it starts

• International activities: MOU with IUCN; Observer to FAO and more

Signatories’ Resolution on Data Collection Concerning the High Seas in

the Southern Indian Oceani. Collect and archive “collect

current and future data” with far greater detail common in most RFMOs. SIODFA -

– Total catch, catch species, number of vessels fishing in the Area and total number of tows.

—Securing historical data – are the only source of much historic information

- Provides data needed to comply with Port States Agreement

Great stuff! ... but what about reality?

i. Manage the fisheries resource (top priority):a. Appropriate levels of fishing effort (43 4 vessels)b. Appropriate catch limits c. Aggregation-based surveys, stock structure analyses,

biological data, …..The main VMEs are the fishery resources!!!ii. Where they occur, protect cold-water coral and other benthos

(catches of corals usually negligible in the SIO)

This Vulnerable Marine Ecosystem triggered implementation of a vessel move-on requirement in the SIO .....

This is usually what the bottom looks like:

Deep-sea fisheries very enormously – please don’t generalize

EIAs – Environmental Impact Assessments

• Click to edit Master text styles– Second level

• Third level– Fourth level

» Fifth level

How to really make progress?

i. More rules and regulations - more enforcement Inspections and observers often work poorly

Needed voluntary and effective compliance!ii. Incentives (NOT SUBSIDIES) to industry for good

management best achieve effective management/ protection of the environment

iii.Secure fishing entitlements provide these incentives - RIGHTS ↔ RESPONSIBILITIES

iv. We need leadership from the UN and support from NGOs!

Thank you

SIODFA

 

 

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Other vesselsSIODFA

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SIODFA

SIODFA

• Click to edit Master text styles– Second level

• Third level– Fourth level

» Fifth level

Roughskin dogfish (ODG)Centroscymnus owstoni [Photo credit: Jessica Sanders]

Photo Credit: Kevin Flanagan

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Box plots of length distributionsorange roughy females

Plot of ovary weight verses body weight – all data

This plot shows the two functional relationships between the variables

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