The International Seafood Sustainability Foundation (ISSF) has published a position statement ahead of the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission (IATTC) annual meeting, which takes place August 1-5, 2022. The statement leads with the request for IATTC to ensure all Commission members are fully implementing the tuna conservation measure for bigeye and yellowfin tuna stocks.
“The IATTC demonstrated their commitment to maintaining healthy tuna catches — with bigeye of greatest concern — through the new tuna conservation measures it adopted in 2021,” said ISSF President Susan Jackson. “We are gratified that the current stock indicators show that bigeye and yellowfin fishing morality has not increased beyond sustainable levels set by the measure and that the interim assessment of skipjack is positive. Now it is essential that all Parties fully implement these measures and cooperate to enhance port sampling that will help maintain skipjack, bigeye, and yellowfin stocks at healthy levels into the future.”
“We urge the IATTC to also address FAD management gaps. For example, IATTC still allows netting in FAD construction, has no agreed definition of biodegradable FADs, and does not have an effective FAD marking scheme or FAD recovery mechanisms,” Jackson continued. “This year especially, the IATTC must, at a minimum, prohibit the use of netting in FADs and act to transition fleets to the increased use of biodegradable FAD materials. Such changes will reduce the impact of FAD fisheries on the marine ecosystem in the Eastern Pacific Ocean.”
The ISSF position statement addresses these top priorities and others:
Fully implement C-21-04 so that the status quo fishing mortality for bigeye and yellowfin is not exceeded; and adequately resource and implement the bigeye Individual Vessel Limits Pilot Study during 2022 that will enhance port-sampling to monitor these limits.
Prohibit the use of any netting in the construction of FADs and encourage fishers/shipowners to deploy a percentage of FADs mostly made of biodegradable materials from 2023 onwards.
Accelerate the management strategy evaluation process for all target tunas.
Adopt best practice reforms to C-12-07 to improve the regulation of at-sea transshipment.
Establish a work plan to strengthen the Committee for the Review of Implementation of Measures adopted by the Commission’s procedures and outcomes.
REPORT: Questions and Answers About FADs and Bycatch
How does the bycatch of non-target species in purse seine fisheries compare to other major global fisheries?
Do sets on FADs and other fishing methods catch juvenile tunas? What are their impacts?
These questions are examples of the many timely inquiries addressed in Questions and Answers About FADs and Bycatch, illustrated throughout with charts and graphics.
A related blog by Dr. Victor Restrepo, Reviewing Progress on the Path to Better Designed, Better Managed FADs, reviews the efforts of ISSF — together with research, NGO, and industry partners — to ensure that FAD fisheries are sustainable for the long term.
ISSF is working to discover and advocate for best practices for an urgent change in fishing gear: the biodegradable fish aggregating device, or bio-FAD. As Dr. Gala Moreno writes, some of ISSF’s most exciting work centers on “jelly-FADs” — bio-FADs designed in collaboration with a team of physical oceanographers.
Jelly-FADs are made of organic materials and are smaller than traditional models, yet they drift slowly, like jellyfish, so ocean currents are less likely to carry them too far afield. Both of those qualities will reduce their environmental impact if they are lost or abandoned.
How Do We Minimize the Impact of Tuna Fishing on Manta and Devil Rays? Just Ask Fishers.
Fishers offer creative insight to reduce manta and devil ray bycatch
How do we protect vulnerable species from commercial fisheries?
As it turns out, fishers themselves may have some of the best answers.
Manta and devil rays (together referred to as Mobulids) are an incredibly captivating group of large fish species and iconic ocean flagship species. However, these species are experiencing global declines due to accidental capture or “bycatch” in industrial tuna fisheries, including purse seine fisheries.
In a new blog for ISSF, Melissa Cronin, doctoral student and Grand Prize winner in ISSF’s International Seafood Sustainability Foundation (ISSF) Seafood Sustainability Contest, reviews her collaborative work with purse seine vessel skippers and crew on handling-and-release methods to reduce the mortality of manta rays and devil rays incidentally caught during fishing.
ISSF published a position statement for consideration at the 100th session of the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission (IATTC), which will take place August 1-5, 2022. The statement covers topics in these categories: tuna conservation; fish aggregating device (FAD) management; harvest strategies; monitoring, control, and surveillance; bycatch and sharks; compliance; and capacity management.
The statement also includes ISSF’s top “asks” or requests of IATTC, along with a list of ISSF’s global priorities for all RFMOs.
Saving the Mobula Rays Poster: Eastern Pacific Ocean
A poster for tuna fishers shows five ray species found in Eastern Pacific tuna fisheries. It also provides location and life-cycle information and illustrates “acceptable” and “not acceptable” handling and release techniques to reduce ray bycatch.
“Saving the Mobula Rays” is shared courtesy of ISSF Seafood Sustainability Contest Grand Prize Winner Melissa Cronin.
How do we protect vulnerable species from commercial fisheries? As it turns out, fishers themselves may have some of the best answers.
Manta and devil rays (together referred to as Mobulids) are an incredibly captivating group of large fish species and iconic ocean flagship species. However, these species are experiencing global declines due to accidental capture or “bycatch” in industrial tuna fisheries, including purse seine fisheries.
It’s been estimated that more than 13,000 Mobulids are captured each year by purse seine vessels, and this capture — combined with the bycatch of other tuna fisheries and other threats like wildlife trade for their gill plates, habitat degradation, and entanglement in other types of fishing gear — is driving population declines for these threatened species globally. In the Eastern Pacific Ocean, Mobulid bycatch by tuna purse seiners is decreasing despite increases in fishing effort in the region — suggesting that these populations may be in decline.
Fisher Observations & Insights
But there may be good news for manta and devil rays.
One recent study showed that improving handling and release methods for Mobulids would be effective for improving their status. In other words, improved practices during fishing operations in the tuna purse-seine fishery could provide serious conservation gains for these vulnerable species. But exactly what methods could reduce their capture and mortality — and how feasible these are onboard tuna vessels — wasn’t known.
Image: Mobulid bycatch in the Eastern Pacific Ocean tuna purse seine fishery. Cronin et al 2022, ICES Journal of Marine Science
To answer these questions, our team set out to learn straight from those with the most experience: fishers (i.e. captains, deckhands, and navigators) and fishery observers, who experience Mobulid bycatch firsthand.
Over the course of several months, we conducted surveys and focus groups with fishers and other stakeholders who had experience working onboard tuna vessels. We were excited to find that fishers have a huge cache of knowledge about Mobulids and how to reduce their capture and mortality.
One major finding was that Mobulids are more likely to be caught in free-school sets than in Fish Aggregating Device (FAD) sets. They also informed us that Mobulids are sighted by fishers after capture in the net but not yet onboard, suggesting that this is an important time where focused mitigation efforts can improve their chances of survival.
Other ideas brought forth by fishers include the use of homemade “manta grids” (photo below), modifying cargo nets and other onboard equipment, and the potential utility of helicopter pilots and spotters to help vessels avoid Mobulids even before fishing begins.
Bycatch Mitigation Challenges
But though fishers had novel ideas to improve bycatch-mitigation practices for Mobulids, they also identified important challenges that have prevented them from using these practices in the fishery.
One of these challenges was the difficulty of releasing large animals that are too heavy for crew to lift manually. Another was simply the lack of release devices necessary to remove Mobulids, which can be physically difficult to hold.
Fortunately, these obstacles could be solved by developing technology that utilizes existing mechanics onboard the vessel to hoist large animals and ensuring that these and other needed equipment are present on all purse seiners that encounter Mobulids.
Image: Commonly reported handling methods for Mobulids in the tuna purse seine fishery include (a) manual release, (b) stretcher, (c) cargo net, and (d) a modified brailer. Photos courtesy of TUNACONS, published in Cronin et al 2022, ICES Journal of Marine Science.
We also noticed that captains and officers are more likely to be surveying the sea from the vessel deck or the crow’s nest — rather than focused on tasks on the deck — and so more likely to see a Mobulid prior to capture. The fact that these more senior “managerial” crew may identify Mobulids earlier is promising, as, generally, only managerial crew can request to stop fishing operations so that Mobulids can be quickly released.
Collaborative Research Continues
The results of this study were recently published in the journal ICES Journal of Marine Science for a special issue about bycatch, and are the latest update in an ongoing collaborative project funded by the International Seafood Sustainability Foundation, involving researchers from University of California, Santa Cruz; TUNACONS; the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission; the Monterey Bay Aquarium; and Manta Trust.
Beyond providing practical knowledge about how fisheries can protect Mobulids, this study offers a model of a collaborative approach that harnesses fisher and stakeholder perspectives on bycatch mitigation and the conservation of vulnerable species. Next, our team is working to expand the findings of this work through real-world trials of some of fishers’ ideas. Stay tuned for more as we work together to protect iconic manta and devil rays.
Doctoral student Melissa Cronin of the University of California, Santa Cruz, was the Grand Prize winner in ISSF’s International Seafood Sustainability Foundation (ISSF) Seafood Sustainability Contest. She won for her contest entry, “Incentivizing Collaborative Release to Reduce Elasmobranch Bycatch Mortality,” which proposed handling-and-release methods that purse-seine vessel skippers and crew can use to reduce the mortality of manta rays and devil rays incidentally caught during tuna fishing. Ms. Cronin is a Ph.D. candidate in the Conservation Action Lab at UC Santa Cruz studying Ecology and Evolutionary Biology.
The report shows a conformance rate of 99.6 percent by ISSF participating companies as of March 2022. It tracks companies’ progress in conforming with thirty-two ISSF conservation measures (CM), such as:
Demonstrating the ability to trace products from can code or sales invoice to vessel and trip
Submitting quarterly purchase data by vessel, trip dates, species, size, and other data to RFMO scientific bodies
Transactions only with those longline vessels whose owners have a policy requiring the implementation of best practices for sharks, sea turtles, and sea birds
Establishing and publishing policies to prohibit shark finning and avoiding transactions with vessels that carry out shark finning
Conducting transactions only with purse seine vessels whose skippers have received science-based information from ISSF on best practices such as reducing bycatch
Avoiding transactions with vessels that are on an RFMO Illegal, Unregulated and Unreported (IUU) Fishing list
As part of its commitment to transparency and accountability, ISSF engages third-party auditor MRAG Americas to audit participating companies to assess their compliance with ISSF conservation measures. MRAG Americas conducts independent auditing based on a rigorous audit protocol.
In addition to a summary report, MRAG Americas issues individual company reports that detail each organization’s compliance with ISSF conservation measures, and ISSF publishes these individual reports on its website.
Transparent Accountability Across Tuna Fisheries also features expert-authored articles on pressing topics related to more sustainable tuna fisheries. Dr. Tom Pickerell, Executive Director of the Global Tuna Alliance and Member of the ISSF Environmental Stakeholder Committee, contributed “Commitments and Credibility in the Tuna Supply Chain.”
ISSF supports multiple initiatives to help track and mitigate the bycatch of sea turtles, especially in longline fisheries. Among the strategies to help protect sea turtle populations, nesting conservation projects can have one of the largest positive impacts.
Nest destruction represents an additional mortality threat to sea turtles and has many causes, including:
Over-harvest of eggs for human consumption
Predation by feral pigs and dogs
Habitat degradation due to development, deforestation, pollution, and other human activities
ISSF supports sea turtle research, conservation, and educational projects worldwide through an annual fund created by several ISSF participating companies: Bumble Bee, Thai Union/COSI, TriMarine, and StarKist.
ICYMI: ISSF Strengthens Conservation Measures on Best Practices for Protecting Sharks, Sea Turtles, and Seabirds; Shark Finning Prevention; and FAD Management Policies
ISSF recently announced updates to ISSF conservation measures (CM) that help ensure best practices for protecting sharks, sea turtles and seabirds; advance shark-finning prevention; and address fish aggregating device (FAD) management.
“ISSF continuously evolves our science-based conservation measures that guide seafood companies and tuna fishers to more sustainable practices. The ISSF Board of Directors has adopted changes to three vessel-focused measures that serve to deepen each measure’s impact,” said ISSF President Susan Jackson.
The amended measures include:
Conservation Measure 3.6 – Transactions with Vessels Implementing Best Practices for Sharks, Sea Turtles and Seabirds
Conservation Measure 3.1(c) – Prohibition of Transactions with Companies without a Public Policy Prohibiting Shark Finning
Conservation Measure 3.7 – Transactions with Vessels or Companies with Vessel-based FAD Management Policies
An infographic, created in partnership with SUBMON and EcoPacifico+, shows fishermen how to safely handle sea turtles unintentionally caught during tuna fishing to help them survive.
A series of “snapshots” identify best practices for sustainable tuna fishing, from FAD management to IUU fishing activities.
Updated to reflect recent outcomes, the snapshots in detailed tables compare tuna Regional Fisheries Management Organization (RFMO) progress in implementing these practices.
Indian Ocean Fisheries Managers Miss the Mark on Yellowfin, Skipjack Tuna, and Strengthening FAD Management, But Make Progress for Bigeye, Electronic Monitoring, and Transshipment
ISSF joined a chorus of sustainable fisheries stakeholders in calling for immediate action to rebuild the overfished yellowfin stock at the recent Indian Ocean Tuna Commission (IOTC) annual meeting. The protection of yellowfin tuna was priority number one.
Unfortunately, the IOTC failed to answer this urgent call. The Commission did not reach agreement on amendments to its yellowfin resolution — amendments that were necessary to give full effect to the scientific advice to ensure an effective and enforceable rebuilding plan and secure the long-term sustainable management of overfished yellowfin.
A new blog by ISSF’s Dr. Hilario Murua and Holly Koehler provides a full review of the recent IOTC meeting.
The Nature Conservancy’s Ben Gilmer Joins ISSF Environmental Stakeholder Committee
ISSF announced that Ben Gilmer, Associate Director of Corporate Engagement and Strategic Initiatives at The Nature Conservancy, will join its Environmental Stakeholder Committee (ESC).
“Mr. Gilmer brings deep knowledge and experience in seafood systems and supply chain transparency to our strong cohort of conservation experts on the ESC,” said ISSF President Susan Jackson. “His record at The Nature Conservancy on transparency initiatives across the global fishing industry is strong, and we look forward to having his expert perspective on the Committee.”
Vessels in Other Sustainability Initiatives (VOSI)
ISSF’s Vessels in Other Sustainability Initiatives (VOSI) lists vessels — of all gear types — that are fishing in a Marine Stewardship Council (MSC)-certified tuna fishery, participating in a tuna Fishery Improvement Project (FIP), or both.
Like the ProActive Vessel Register (PVR), VOSI is a transparency tool for the public, including stakeholders that want to understand which tuna vessels have made public commitments to sustainable fishing beyond the commitments reflected on the PVR.
The International Seafood Sustainability Foundation (ISSF) announced today that Ben Gilmer, Associate Director of Corporate Engagement and Strategic Initiatives at The Nature Conservancy, will join its Environmental Stakeholder Committee (ESC).
“Mr. Gilmer brings deep knowledge and experience in seafood systems and supply chain transparency to our strong cohort of conservation experts on the ESC,” said ISSF President Susan Jackson. “His record at The Nature Conservancy on transparency initiatives across the global fishing industry is strong, and we look forward to having his expert perspective on the Committee.”
Ben Gilmer serves as Associate Director of Corporate Engagement and Strategic Initiatives at The Nature Conservancy, where he is focused on seafood transparency initiatives in Asia-Pacific, Africa, and Latin America. In this role, Mr. Gilmer supports governments and companies with policy and program development, partnerships, technology innovation, and fishery improvement project implementation.
He most recently served as CEO of Stuart Land & Cattle Company, a diversified agriculture company in Southwest Virginia, and founded Refresh Appalachia, a social enterprise that provided on-the-job training in sustainable agriculture to disadvantaged workers in the coalfields of Central Appalachia. Mr. Gilmer previously worked as a sustainability consultant to the Inter-American Development Bank and other clients and was a member of TNC’s Global Oceans team.
Mr. Gilmer has more than 15 years’ experience working in environmental conservation and food systems. His specialties include fisheries, agriculture, climate, technology, and community development. He has a Master’s degree from West Virginia University and a Bachelor’s degree from Radford University.
About the ISSF Environmental Stakeholder Committee
The ESC comprises expert representatives from various conservation organizations who volunteer to share their expertise. The ESC, much like ISSF’s Scientific Advisory Committee (SAC), provides advice to the ISSF Board of Directors on issues to consider before taking action on specific sustainability efforts, including the adoption of ISSF conservation measures.
The ESC members are:
Sonja Fordham, Founder, Shark Advocates International
Ben Gilmer, Associate Director of Corporate Engagement and Strategic Initiatives, The Nature Conservancy
Bill Holden, Chair, ISSF Environmental Stakeholder Committee | Senior Tuna Fisheries Outreach Manager, Marine Stewardship Council (MSC)
Jennifer Dianto Kemmerly, Vice President, Global Ocean Initiatives, Monterey Bay Aquarium
Sara Lewis, Traceability Division Director, FishWise
Dr. Vishwanie Maharaj, Lead, Tunas and Other Multilateral Fisheries, World Wildlife Fund-US
Dr. Alexia Morgan, Science Lead, Tuna and Large Pelagic Species, Sustainable Fisheries Partnership (SFP)
Dr. Tom Pickerell, Executive Director, Global Tuna Alliance
Unfortunately, the IOTC failed to answer this urgent call. The Commission did not reach agreement on amendments to its yellowfin resolution — amendments that were necessary to give full effect to the scientific advice to ensure an effective and enforceable rebuilding plan and secure the long-term sustainable management of overfished yellowfin. The IOTC disregarded its Scientific Committee’s recent guidance on action needed to prevent further declines in the stock.
By not amending its yellowfin measure, the Commission is perpetuating a situation that can only accelerate further stock decline. Some IOTC parties have made the required yellowfin catch reductions called for in the existing measure. Other parties have increased their yellowfin catches. And still other parties, in objecting to the measure, insist that catch limits do not apply to them. The existing measure, even if fully implemented, would not be sufficient.
In a further blow to tuna conservation, the IOTC also failed to fulfill its responsibility in managing skipjack tuna. Specifically, the Commission did not agree on the skipjack catch reductions necessary to implement the annual quota resultant from its harvest control rule. As a result, skipjack catches may persist in exceeding agreed-to annual catch limits, putting the currently healthy stock at further risk.
Strengthened FAD management in the Indian Ocean was another top ask for ISSF and its stakeholders ahead of the IOTC annual meeting. Advancement in this area was stymied, too. The Commission did not agree to enhanced FAD management provisions that were in line with recommended, science-based best practices — practices like accelerating the transition towards biodegradable FADs to reduce the environmental impacts of traditional FADs; requiring the submission of important FAD data essential for science and compliance; and establishing FAD marking rules. This year marks the second consecutive year that IOTC failed to make headway on better managed FADs, even though meaningful proposals were tabled. The need for these FAD improvements is clear, and IOTC’s lack of progress on them remains unacceptable.
Progress for Bigeye Management and Electronic Monitoring
While it’s difficult to look past these missteps on yellowfin and skipjack tuna and FAD management, we acknowledge that the IOTC did act on some critical issues. Here’s how the Commission advanced other topics where action was needed:
The IOTC adopted a much-needed management procedure for bigeye tuna. Management procedures (also called harvest strategies) — which include target and limit reference points, together with harvest control rules — provide pre-agreed rules for acting on stock status changes when managing fisheries resources. If effectively implemented, a management procedure for bigeye gives the IOTC an essential tool to ensure the long-term sustainable management of this key tuna resource.
The IOTC took a positive step toward using Electronic Monitoring (EM) to achieve its observer coverage rates, an area in which the Commission lags far behind other tuna RFMOs — for example, the IOTC still does not require 100% observer coverage on purse seine vessels. The IOTC agreed to allow the use of EM on fishing vessels, rather than human observers only, to meet its 5% observer coverage requirement. And the Commission set a clear deadline in requiring the development of minimum standards for the use of EM by 2024. Although a good step, the next and urgent one should be to increase observer coverage on all vessels. ISSF commits to continued work with the IOTC EM Working Group to ensure the success of these improvements, which are essential to effective fisheries management and compliance monitoring.
The IOTC tightened its regulation of at-sea transshipment in the Indian Ocean. The Commission strengthened its at-sea transshipment resolution to include enhanced inspections in port, as called for in the FAO Port States Measures Agreement, the accepted guide to best practices in minimizing IUU activities in fisheries. ISSF welcomes this progress in combating IUU fishing activity in the region through enhanced port State controls.
While important, these wins for stronger management do not overcome the inaction for yellowfin tuna stocks, skipjack tuna, and enhanced FAD management. The indecision in those areas is especially egregious considering that for over a year, consistent and urgent pleas from countless fisheries stakeholders have been issued on these topics. Political will from all players has been and continues to be severely lacking.
ISSF is committed to the long-term sustainable use of valuable Indian Ocean tuna resources. ISSF urges all IOTC parties to adhere to the current rebuilding plan and work collaboratively to urgently develop a more robust and enforceable measure that fully implements the scientific advice.
