Last Thursday saw the close to the 2012 CCAMLR meeting, the 31st of its kind. While it was disappointing that there was not a consensus on MPAs in Antarctic waters, there will be a CCAMLR special meeting (only the 2nd ever) held in July next year to discuss this topic further.
Positive outcomes were seen in CCAMLR’s toothfish fisheries with another two becoming certified by the Marine Stewardship Council, taking the total to 4 toothfish fisheries certified as sustainable and well managed under the MSC standard, with a further two under full assessment.
CCAMLR recognised the efforts of members in virtually eliminating seabird mortalites in toothfish fisheries, with CCAMLR stating: “During its 31 years CCAMLR has implemented a wide range of conservation measures to improve the conservation of Antarctic ecosystems. One such measure is the reduction of seabird by-catch mortality in CCAMLR managed fisheries, from close to 7,000 seabirds in 1997 to close to zero in 2012.”
CCAMLR also recognised the efforts of members and NGO’s for their role in significantly reducing Illegal, Unregulated and Unreported fishing for toothfish in the Convention area. CCAMLR stated: “Another significant achievement has been combating illegal, unregulated and unreported (IUU) fishing. A combination of surveillance, port and at sea inspections, Vessel Monitoring System, black list and market controls have significantly reduced IUU fishing that undermines the conservation measures adopted by CCAMLR. Fish taken by IUU vessels, for example, has decreased from an estimated 40,000 tonnes per year in the 1990s to less than 2,000 tonnes in 2010/2011.”
This and more can be read in the CCAMLR media release.