The South Pacific Regional Fisheries Management Organisation adopts a measure to mitigate seabird bycatch in longline and trawl fisheries

The Second Commission Meeting of the South Pacific Regional Fisheries Management Organisation (SPRFMO) was held last month in Manta, Ecuador (click here).  ACAP was represented at the meeting by its Executive Secretary, Warren Papworth.

A conservation and management measure (COMM-02-08) for minimising the bycatch of seabirds in the SPRFMO convention area was proposed for consideration at the meeting by the Government of New Zealand.

The Commission subsequently adopted a conservation and management measure (CMM 2.04) based on the New Zealand proposal (click here for the meeting’s report).  CMM 2.04 substantially reflects ACAP’s best-practice advice for minimising seabird bycatch in demersal longline and trawl fisheries and the adoption of this CMM by the SPRFMO Commission is warmly welcomed.

The Commission also requested its Secretariat to explore the possibility of a memorandum of understanding on data exchange with ACAP.

The South Pacific Regional Fisheries Management Organisation is an intergovernmentalorganisation committed to the long-term conservation and sustainable use of the fishery resources of the South Pacific Ocean and in so doing safeguarding the marine ecosystems in which the resources occur.

Warren Papworth, ACAP Executive Secretary, 10 February 2014