Measures to Lessen the Impacts of High Sea Fisheries
The Agreement on High Seas Fishing
In 1992 a call was sent out to the United Nations to address the problems surrounding High Seas fisheries. In 1993 The United Nations held the first meeting of the Conference on Straddling and Highly Migratory stocks was held. I was not until 1995 that an agreement, called The Agreement on High Seas Fishing, was created to be signed. This agreement was created to address the environmental and economical problems. These problems arouse from the Law of the Sea, written in 1982, by allowing all nations to have free reign over the ocean outside of the Exclusive Economic Zones, with no limitations of fishing catches. The Agreement was created to rectify the section on the High Seas to make this world wide source more protected.
One of the things this Agreement sets up is a set of conservation and management measures. The main idea is to set up regional organizations, run by nations that ratify to this agreement. The responsibilities of the states that ratify are to collect, report, and verify exchange data on catches and set up quotas based on this information. The fishermen are obliged to make these reports and since these organizations are to be made up of several states in that region they will do checks on each other to monitor for deliberate under-reporting. The Agreement also calls on the involved states to set quotas and restrictions based on "precautionary principle". This principle obliges countries to take a conservative view of fish stocks to determine if they are in danger of over exploitation. These organizations are also given the right to set up fishing grounds in the high sea as areas where only boats from nations that agree fully to the organization's policies are allowed to go. All nations are subject to the agreement, whether they decided to ratify it or not. Under international law, the nations that do not support the agreement are not directly under its influence. But the regional organization are given the authority to enforce conservation practices and laws and take action against any boat that attempts to undermine these laws and practices.
One of the issues addressed by the agreement is the enforcement of the polices of the regional organizations. Before the agreement boats were only subject to the jurisdiction of their "flag" nation, the nation of origin. But since the agreement, any boat wishing to fish in a region can be boarded and inspected by any of the countries that are party to the region's organization. This is to ensure that the boats are following the regions specific quotas. If a boat is found to be in violation of the regions policies than a message is to be sent to the flag state. If there is no response from the flag state within three days, during which time the boat may be occupied by the regional state, than the boat is directed to the nearest appropriate port for further legal action. If the flag state responds and claims that the regional state boarded the boat unjustifiably than a series of dispute-settlement procedures can commence.
One of the things this Agreement sets up is a set of conservation and management measures. The main idea is to set up regional organizations, run by nations that ratify to this agreement. The responsibilities of the states that ratify are to collect, report, and verify exchange data on catches and set up quotas based on this information. The fishermen are obliged to make these reports and since these organizations are to be made up of several states in that region they will do checks on each other to monitor for deliberate under-reporting. The Agreement also calls on the involved states to set quotas and restrictions based on "precautionary principle". This principle obliges countries to take a conservative view of fish stocks to determine if they are in danger of over exploitation. These organizations are also given the right to set up fishing grounds in the high sea as areas where only boats from nations that agree fully to the organization's policies are allowed to go. All nations are subject to the agreement, whether they decided to ratify it or not. Under international law, the nations that do not support the agreement are not directly under its influence. But the regional organization are given the authority to enforce conservation practices and laws and take action against any boat that attempts to undermine these laws and practices.
One of the issues addressed by the agreement is the enforcement of the polices of the regional organizations. Before the agreement boats were only subject to the jurisdiction of their "flag" nation, the nation of origin. But since the agreement, any boat wishing to fish in a region can be boarded and inspected by any of the countries that are party to the region's organization. This is to ensure that the boats are following the regions specific quotas. If a boat is found to be in violation of the regions policies than a message is to be sent to the flag state. If there is no response from the flag state within three days, during which time the boat may be occupied by the regional state, than the boat is directed to the nearest appropriate port for further legal action. If the flag state responds and claims that the regional state boarded the boat unjustifiably than a series of dispute-settlement procedures can commence.
High Seas Marine Protected Areas
Marine Protected Areas, or MPAs, are areas were certain regulations and quotas are in place or entire regions are closed to fishing. This is done to protect areas such as reefs and other places where juvenile fish aggregate. Several regional organizations have created MPAs:
North East Atlantic Fisheries Commission (NEAFC)
North West Atlantic Fisheries Organization (NAFO)
South East Atlantic Fisheries Organization (SEAFO)
General Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean (GFCM)
Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR)
Southern Indian Ocean Deepsea Fishers’ Association (SIODFA)
North East Atlantic Fisheries Commission (NEAFC)
This regulatory area has areas where bottom trawling and other static gears have been banned. In the Hatton and Rockall Banks area there are six closures to bottom fishing to protect areas where juvenile fish and cold water coral reefs are located (Map 1). 330,000 sq. km were closed in 2009 in the Mid-Atlantic ridge (Map 2) area to any fishing gear that may come in contact with the ocean floor. Gillnets and entanglement nets were banned from used below 200 meters in all areas.
North West Atlantic Fisheries Organization (NAFO)
This regulatory area created an area that is closed to shrimp fishing during certain times of the year. They also agreed to close off six sea mounts to all bottom fishing to protect the vulnerable marine environments. Four of those seamounts were protected in 2006 and the two "Fogo" seamounts were protected in 2008 (Map 3). Along the Grand Banks of Newfoundland, a coral protection zone was created where all forms of fishing that may contact the bottom has been banned.
South East Atlantic Fisheries Organization (SEAFO)
In this regulatory region thirteen areas were designated as vulnerable marine environments. Of these thirteen, ten were closed to fishing practices (Map 4). All of these areas are either seamounts, hot vents, or cold water corals. Six of these areas have been categorized as unexploited, while the other four, the Dampier, Malahit Guyot, Molloy and Vema Seamounts, have been recorded to have some fishing in the past. These areas have gone through exploratory fishing practices to look at the impacts of bottom fishing to see if a resumption of fishing should commence.
General Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean (GFCM)
In 2005, GFCM adopted the practice of banning towed dredges and trawl nets deeper than 1000 meters. In 2006, three areas were designated as fisheries restricted areas to protect corals, cold seeps, and seamounts (Map 5).
Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR)
As of now there are no closed regions in the Antarctic (map 6), CCAMLR is just starting to take in scientific data to bioregionalize the waters around Antarctica. For now there is a regulation against bottom trawls in the Conservation areas.
Southern Indian Ocean Deepsea Fishers’ Association (SIODFA)
The SIODFA is a set of companies that use bottom trawling techniques that have set up several areas designated as benthic protected areas on there own (Maps 7 and 8). In these areas bottom trawling and dredging is forbidden to the companies that are part of SIODFA. Members have agreed that mid-water trawling is also to be banned in these areas, but anyone outside of SIODFA is not subject to these restrictions.
North East Atlantic Fisheries Commission (NEAFC)
North West Atlantic Fisheries Organization (NAFO)
South East Atlantic Fisheries Organization (SEAFO)
General Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean (GFCM)
Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR)
Southern Indian Ocean Deepsea Fishers’ Association (SIODFA)
North East Atlantic Fisheries Commission (NEAFC)
This regulatory area has areas where bottom trawling and other static gears have been banned. In the Hatton and Rockall Banks area there are six closures to bottom fishing to protect areas where juvenile fish and cold water coral reefs are located (Map 1). 330,000 sq. km were closed in 2009 in the Mid-Atlantic ridge (Map 2) area to any fishing gear that may come in contact with the ocean floor. Gillnets and entanglement nets were banned from used below 200 meters in all areas.
North West Atlantic Fisheries Organization (NAFO)
This regulatory area created an area that is closed to shrimp fishing during certain times of the year. They also agreed to close off six sea mounts to all bottom fishing to protect the vulnerable marine environments. Four of those seamounts were protected in 2006 and the two "Fogo" seamounts were protected in 2008 (Map 3). Along the Grand Banks of Newfoundland, a coral protection zone was created where all forms of fishing that may contact the bottom has been banned.
South East Atlantic Fisheries Organization (SEAFO)
In this regulatory region thirteen areas were designated as vulnerable marine environments. Of these thirteen, ten were closed to fishing practices (Map 4). All of these areas are either seamounts, hot vents, or cold water corals. Six of these areas have been categorized as unexploited, while the other four, the Dampier, Malahit Guyot, Molloy and Vema Seamounts, have been recorded to have some fishing in the past. These areas have gone through exploratory fishing practices to look at the impacts of bottom fishing to see if a resumption of fishing should commence.
General Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean (GFCM)
In 2005, GFCM adopted the practice of banning towed dredges and trawl nets deeper than 1000 meters. In 2006, three areas were designated as fisheries restricted areas to protect corals, cold seeps, and seamounts (Map 5).
Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR)
As of now there are no closed regions in the Antarctic (map 6), CCAMLR is just starting to take in scientific data to bioregionalize the waters around Antarctica. For now there is a regulation against bottom trawls in the Conservation areas.
Southern Indian Ocean Deepsea Fishers’ Association (SIODFA)
The SIODFA is a set of companies that use bottom trawling techniques that have set up several areas designated as benthic protected areas on there own (Maps 7 and 8). In these areas bottom trawling and dredging is forbidden to the companies that are part of SIODFA. Members have agreed that mid-water trawling is also to be banned in these areas, but anyone outside of SIODFA is not subject to these restrictions.
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