Tag Archives: US purse seiners
Six year US Tuna Treaty, illegal fishing highlighted in Pacific Island Forum report card
Matai Seremaiah Nawalu, Chair of the Forum Fisheries Committee Ministers, told leaders that while there’s additional administrative and individual processes to complete, the Pacific negotiators have delivered against the mandate handed down by Leaders and Ministers. He said the six year agreement that has been reached is an excellent outcome and asked that the leaders join him in thanking and congratulating the region’s negotiators of the US Tuna Treaty. The treaty allows US purse seiners including those that supply the local canneries access to the exclusive economic zones of Forum member countries which cover a wide swath of the Western and Central Pacific Ocean which contains the largest and most valuable tuna fisheries in the world. Many Pacific Island parties depend on fisheries as one of their most imhportant natural resources, and the United States has for decades sought to be a valued partner in developing regional fisheries. The U.S. purse seine fleet operates according to the highest commercial standards and is subject to strict enforcement by authorities. Read the rest here 13:36
Pacific Islands moving away from vessel day scheme
US tuna boat owners have decried the policy of the Pacific island countries which are party to the US South Pacific Tuna Treaty to charge for fishing days rather than the amount of fish caught under the treaty. The Parties to the Nauru Agreemen (PNA) , the grouping of countries with the largest exclusive economic zones where US purse seiners fish came up with the vessel day scheme promoting it as a more equitable way for the islands to be paid for their resource. While there’s an interim agreement in place for tuna boats to resume fishing in Pacific island waters,,Read the rest, click here 14:15
Vessel Day Scheme – US gives official notice to reduce fishing days
The United States is seeking to renege on an agreement it signed with the 17 member Pacific Island Forum Fisheries Agency (FFA) member states, admitting it cannot afford to pay the full $89.2m deal it signed in Brisbane with Pacific Island nations. The agreement is important for American Samoa as it controls access to neighboring fishing grounds for US purse seiners that deliver to the local canneries. A statement from PNA says the US now says it cannot afford to fish in PNA waters under the Vessel Day Scheme. Read the article here 09:51
Tri Marine disappointed with NMFS decision – Purse seiners will continue to fish but…
The decision by the National Marine Fisheries Service not to issue an emergency rule to exempt purse seiners that deliver at least half of their catch to the local canneries from the ban on fishing in the high seas, puts fish supply for the canneries in jeopardy. In early statements Tri Marine said that locally based purse seiners would have to fish in waters close to Papua New Guinea and would find it uneconomical to travel all the way to Pago Pago to off load. Read the rest here, Meanwhile, The president of the American Tunaboat Association Brian Hallman says the ban on high seas fishing is very costly to US purse seiners, and while they will continue to fight on, at some point boat owners cannot continue to lose money and stay in business. Read the rest here 17:29
American Samoa – Loss of purse seiners will be catastrophic
The Chairman of the Governor’s Fisheries Task Force, Solip Hong, says there will be catastrophic effects for the territory’s economy if the current fleet of US purse seiners pack up due to loss of fishing grounds in near waters. The purse seiners face a bleak future because of a drastic reduction in fishing days under the South Pacific Tuna Treaty in waters near Kiribati that the local purse seine fleet used to ply. Read the rest here 18:57
