Conservation and Management Measure for bigeye, yellowfin and skipjack tuna in the Western and Central Pacific Ocean
Comment
Relevant sections as follows:
Non-entangling FADs
17. To reduce the risk of entanglement of sharks, sea turtles or any other species, as from 1st January 2024,2 CCMs shall ensure that the design and construction of any FAD to be deployed in, or that drifts into, the WCPFC Convention Area shall comply with the following specifications:
(a) The use of mesh net shall be prohibited for any part of a FAD.
(b) If the raft is covered, only non-entangling material and designs shall be used.
(c) The subsurface structure shall only be made using non-entangling materials.
18. To reduce the amount of synthetic marine debris, CCMs shall encourage vessels flying their flag to use, or transition towards using, non-plastic and biodegradable materials in the construction of FADs.
19. The Scientific Committee shall continue to review research results on the use of biodegradable material on FADs, and shall provide specific recommendations to the Commission in 2022 including on a definition of biodegradable FADs, a timeline for the stepwise introduction of biodegradable FADs, potential gaps/needs and any other relevant information.
20. The Commission at its 2023 annual session, based on specific guidelines defined by the FAD Management Options Intersessional Working Group and advice from SC19 and TCC19 shall consider the adoption of measures on the implementation of biodegradable material on FADs.
2This timeframe may be extended where there are extraordinary circumstances which make implementation impossible. Due to legislative constraints, Indonesia will have an additional 2 years to implement subparagraph (a).
Instrumented Buoys
21. A flag CCM shall ensure that each of its purse seine vessels shall have deployed at sea, at any one time, no more than 350 drifting Fish Aggregating Devices (FADs) with activated instrumented buoys. An instrumented buoy is defined as a buoy with a clearly marked reference number allowing its identification and equipped with a satellite tracking system to monitor its position. The buoy shall be activated exclusively on board the vessel. A flag CCM shall ensure that its vessels operating in the waters of a coastal State comply with the laws of that coastal State relating to FAD management, including FAD tracking.
22. CCMs shall also encourage vessels to:
(a) responsibly manage the number of drifting FADs deployed each year;
(b) carry equipment on board to facilitate the retrieval of lost drifting FADs;
(c) make reasonable efforts to retrieve lost drifting FADs; and
(d) report the loss of drifting FADs, and if the loss occurred
Relevant sections as follows:
Non-entangling FADs
17. To reduce the risk of entanglement of sharks, sea turtles or any other species, as from 1st January 2024,2 CCMs shall ensure that the design and construction of any FAD to be deployed in, or that drifts into, the WCPFC Convention Area shall comply with the following specifications:
(a) The use of mesh net shall be prohibited for any part of a FAD.
(b) If the raft is covered, only non-entangling material and designs shall be used.
(c) The subsurface structure shall only be made using non-entangling materials.
18. To reduce the amount of synthetic marine debris, CCMs shall encourage vessels flying their flag to use, or transition towards using, non-plastic and biodegradable materials in the construction of FADs.
19. The Scientific Committee shall continue to review research results on the use of biodegradable material on FADs, and shall provide specific recommendations to the Commission in 2022 including on a definition of biodegradable FADs, a timeline for the stepwise introduction of biodegradable FADs, potential gaps/needs and any other relevant information.
20. The Commission at its 2023 annual session, based on specific guidelines defined by the FAD Management Options Intersessional Working Group and advice from SC19 and TCC19 shall consider the adoption of measures on the implementation of biodegradable material on FADs.
2 This timeframe may be extended where there are extraordinary circumstances which make implementation impossible. Due to legislative constraints, Indonesia will have an additional 2 years to implement subparagraph (a).
Instrumented Buoys
21. A flag CCM shall ensure that each of its purse seine vessels shall have deployed at sea, at any one time, no more than 350 drifting Fish Aggregating Devices (FADs) with activated instrumented buoys. An instrumented buoy is defined as a buoy with a clearly marked reference number allowing its identification and equipped with a satellite tracking system to monitor its position. The buoy shall be activated exclusively on board the vessel. A flag CCM shall ensure that its vessels operating in the waters of a coastal State comply with the laws of that coastal State relating to FAD management, including FAD tracking.
22. CCMs shall also encourage vessels to:
(a) responsibly manage the number of drifting FADs deployed each year;
(b) carry equipment on board to facilitate the retrieval of lost drifting FADs;
(c) make reasonable efforts to retrieve lost drifting FADs; and
(d) report the loss of drifting FADs, and if the loss occurred
Replaces CMM 2020-01