A two-year study on illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing in the Pacific Ocean has valued the loss at over US$600 million per year resulting in Pacific Island nations stepping up plans to deter and eventually stop illegal fishing activities.

Many Pacific countries have signed up to the Niue Treaty Subsidiary Agreement (NTSA), a legal agreement allowing Pacific nations to protect fisheries through the sharing of information and resources such as fisheries data and intelligence and conducting joint surveillance and enforcement activities.

The impact IUU has on Pacific countries is hindering their economies and societies especially those whose principal revenue revolves around fisheries.

Dr Tupou-Roosen, FFA’s Legal Counsel said that Pacific leaders have long recognized the IUU financial toxicity to their fishery as far back as 2007 but did not know the best way of going about making a Pacific specific IUU weapon.

“It wasn’t until 2010 at the Pacific Leaders Forum in Port Vila that they did. That the best avenue would be through a multilateral instrument the Niue Treaty Subsidiary Agreement (NTSA),” said Dr Tupou-Roosen.

Under the agreement, information is stored in a central database, the Niue Treaty Information System (NTIS), with the requirement that minimum data must be shared in order for it to be effective.

“Let’s say Nauru would like other parties, Tuvalu and Vanuatu to come and help in its waters. One of the minimum data that Nauru must provide is the license list. Otherwise they would just go around willy-nilly targeting any vessel when they should for example, be targeting only ‘unlicensed vessels,” she said.

Dr Tupou-Roosen also added that the NTIS information is populated by members and allows parties to cooperate in monitoring, control and surveillance areas.

“We are investing heavily in this system because when all countries are on board and use the system, it will reduce further the losses our members are experiencing through IUU fishing.”

Only seven of FFA’s 17 member countries have ratified the NTSA, which entered into force on 30 July 2014. However, there is still reluctance from Parties to the Nauru Agreement (PNA) members and Fiji to sign, whereas the Federated States of Micronesia has followed Palau, Nauru and Tuvalu as supporters of the NTSA.

Joint surveillance

Already joint maritime surveillance operations have taken place with operation ‘Tautai’ involving the Cook Islands, France and New Zealand. As a result, the Cook Islands authorities are currently investigating fishing infringements.

Another operation codenamed ‘Ika Moana’, involved Samoa, Tonga, Cook Islands, Niue and a P3 Orion anti-submarine from New Zealand was also deemed a huge success and more joint operations are planned. 

The Towards the Quantification of Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) Fishing in the Pacific Islands region report was coordinated by the Forum Fisheries Agency and is the first attempt to put a value and quantity around the volume of species illegally taken in the Pacific.