Australia leads landmark reform on Southern Blue Fin Tuna

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Australia has spearheaded landmark reforms to the global management of Southern Bluefin Tuna (SBT) at the 13th Commission for the Conservation of SBT (CCSBT) meeting held last week in Miyazaki, Japan.

Under agreements reached by the Commission Japan's allocated catch has been more than halved for the next five years (6,065 tonnes down to 3,000 tonnes) while Australia's allocation will remain at 5,265 tonnes for the next three years.

“This is a major win for the Australian fishing industry and for global conservation,” Australian Fisheries and Conservation Minister Senator Eric Abetz said.

“The decision is just reward for several years' investigation and diplomacy by the Australian Government and further underlines our reputation as a global leader in marine conservation.”

The Minister said that taking into account the findings of an independent review confirming a Japanese overcatch of up to 178,000 tonnes over the past 20 years, valued at $6-$8b, the Commission has agreed to reduce some members' allocations to ensure that the level of catch remains within the levels recommended by the Scientific Committee.

CCSBT has also agreed to develop and implement a number of measures to improve monitoring, control and surveillance within the fishery, including:

• Regulation of transshipping, including a 100% observer coverage on trans-shipping vessels by Commission appointed observers

• A catch documentation scheme

• Compulsory national vessel monitoring systems with minimum standards

• A commitment to a further meeting of the Compliance Committee in March to further develop these measures for implementation and work on further measures including an independent observer program for fishing vessels, port state measures, boarding and inspection and a vessel register

In addition, to improve transparency of and confidence in management measures, all Members and Cooperating Non-members will provide data about their quota allocations and catches at the company, quota holders or vessel level.

Japan has introduced a new domestic monitoring scheme for their vessels including moving from an 'Olympic' type quota system to one allocated to individual vessels and a tagging system designed to ensure that catches are maintained within Japan's limit.