Fisheries in the Pacific (original) (raw)
Research on fisheries in the Pacific Islands region
South Pacific Commission and …, 1995
This review was compiled jointly by the Resource Assessment Section of the South Pacific Commission (SPC) Fisheries Programme and the Research Coordination Unit (RCU) of the South Pacific Forum Fisheries Agency (FFA). The intentions of the review are:- 1. to update some aspects of previous regional research reviews—see Anon. (1962), Fakahau et al. (1986), Herr (1990)—as part of the summing-up process of the work of SPC's Inshore Fisheries Research Project (1988-1994) and the FFA's RCU (1988 -1995); 2. to provide baseline information for possible development of a Pacific Island consensus regional coastal fisheries research strategy; 3. to develop a working paper for discussion at the June, 1995 workshop on Inshore Fisheries Management, convened jointly by FFA and SPC in Nouméa;
Coastal Fisheries in the Pacific Islands
1996
Coastal fisheries in the South Pacific are reviewed, including descriptions of fisheries, catch composition, catch rates and fisheries biology studies conducted on target stocks. The most widely targeted coastal fish stocks are reef fishes and coastal pelagic fishes. Small pelagic species are important for subsistence and small-scale commercial fisheries. Previously, small pelagic resources were important as a source of live bait for pole-and-line tuna fishing, but this method is declining and only one large bait fishery is left in the region in the Solomon Islands. The pole-and-line bait fisheries represent the only large-scale industrial fisheries to have operated in the coral reef lagoons of the Pacific. Estuarine resources are of major importance only in the large islands of Melanesia but are the staple diet of a relatively large proportion of the total South Pacific population. Deep slope fish stocks form the basis of only two commercial fisheries in the region and expansion of deep slope fishing comparable with the 1970s and 1980s is unlikely to occur again. Commercial fisheries development is currently orientated towards small- and medium-scale long-line fisheries for offshore pelagic resources, where high value tunas and billfishes are caught for export markets. The total coastal fisheries production from the region amounts to just over 100000 tyr-l, worth a nominal US$262 000 000. About 80% of this production is from subsistence fishing. Just under half the total annual commercial catch comes from fishing on coral reefs, which includes a small tonnage of deep slope species. Invertebrates are the most valuable inshore fisheries resources and these include sea-cucumbers, trochus and pearl oyster. Lobsters and mangrove crabs form the basis of small-scale commercial fisheries, as also do penaeid shrimps, except in PNG where they are caught in large quantities through trawling. Mariculture of shrimps is becoming increasingly popular in the region and is a major industry in New Caledonia. The greatest influence on coastal fisheries in the Pacific through the next decade is likely to come from southeast and east Asia, where the demand for high value coastal fishes and invertebrates has led to large scale depletions and has motivated entrepreneurs to seek stocks in the neighbouring Pacific islands.
Optimizing Fisheries Benefits in the Pacific Islands : Major Issues and Constraints
World Bank Other Operational Studies, 2008
The findings, interpretations, and conclusions expressed in this paper do not necessarily reflect the views of the Executive Directors of the World Bank on the governments they represent. The World Bank does not guarantee the accuracy of the data included in this work. The boundaries, colors, denominations, and other information shown on any map in this work do not imply any judgment on the part of The World Bank concerning the legal status of any territory or the endorsement or acceptance of such boundaries. The material in this publication is copyrighted. Copying and/or transmitting portions or all of this work without permission may be a violation of applicable law. The World Bank encourages dissemination of its work and will normally grant permission to reproduce portions of the work promptly.
Pacific Cooperation Plan - Preliminary Sector Analysis - Fisheries
Fisheries and aquaculture production by the Pacific Islands Forum and Community region is roughly estimated to be worth US$850 million, not counting other economic benefits such as employment etc., whilst the value of fish caught in the Western and Central Pacific region by non-Pacific Island vessels is worth up to US$2 billion. Apart from skipjack tuna, most Pacific Island fish stocks, whether offshore or inshore, are felt to be at their maximum safe level of production, and extra economic benefit is likely to be derived not from increasing overall fishing effort in the region but from (a) developing higher-price markets and higher-value or higher-quality products (including live fish); (b) Pacific Island vessels substituting for distant water fishing vessels, or encouraging foreign vessels to land fish in Pacific Island countries for value-adding; (c) transcending the limits of natural marine systems through aquaculture; and (d) researching new fisheries for hitherto-unused marine organisms. Before trying to increase the economic value of fisheries and aquaculture however, it will be essential for PICTs to consolidate and sustain the value of what they currently have. Whilst fisheries are renewable resources, the value of fisheries is vulnerable both to overfishing and (in the nearshore especially) to other human impacts such as pollution. Limits are already being brought to bear on the regional tuna fishery, and several critical inshore fisheries have been limited by government action. Everywhere there is a groundswell of support for strengthening traditional and community management systems for inshore fisheries, which can relieve some of the limitations on government. This trend is encouraging and this region can justifiably consider itself ahead of many other regions, including parts of the developed world, in applying sound governance principles to fisheries. However, specific attention is needed to improve the integrity of modern, offshore fisheries licencing systems, and a major challenge awaits any government that tries to effectively integrate coastal and marine areas into a whole-island management system in order to tackle land-based effects on the marine environment. Some probable issues for the future are discussed, including the likelihood of increasing conflict between user-groups as resources hit their limits, the role of the Pacific Islands Regional Ocean Policy, and the need for a regional decision on the future of regional marine spaces to accommodate different users. An ocean management regime that is robust in the face of inadequate information, and which contains “insurance”, is preferable to a regime that attempts to squeeze every last possible financial benefit out of the ocean.
Introduction: Pacific Islanders, “custodians of the ocean” facing fisheries challenges
2016
HAL is a multi-disciplinary open access archive for the deposit and dissemination of scientific research documents, whether they are published or not. The documents may come from teaching and research institutions in France or abroad, or from public or private research centers. L’archive ouverte pluridisciplinaire HAL, est destinée au dépôt et à la diffusion de documents scientifiques de niveau recherche, publiés ou non, émanant des établissements d’enseignement et de recherche français ou étrangers, des laboratoires publics ou privés. Introduction: Pacific Islanders as ‘custodians of the ocean’ facing fisheries challenges Elodie Fache, Simonne Pauwels, Joeli Veitayaki
Pacific Geographies, 2019
The Franco-German research project 'A Sea of Connections: Contextualizing Fisheries in the South Pacific Region' (SOCPacific, 2018-2021) aims to explore the large web of socio-cultural, policy and geopolitical connections within which both coastal and oceanic fishing practices and fisheries management endeavours occur in this intricate and ever-changing regional setting. After some brief background, this research note presents the project's set of more specific objectives. It then outlines the rationale for choosing three study areas (New Caledonia, Vanuatu and Fiji) for our analysis of the complex and dynamic 'sea of connections' in which South Pacific fisheries are embedded. Finally, it outlines the combination of research tools and concepts that make up the core of the prospected interdisciplinary, multi-level and multi-stakeholder investigations related to these study areas. This approach intends to contribute to the advancement of cross-cutting knowledge in the multi-faceted field of local fisheries management and marine governance.
Deep Sea Research Part II: Topical Studies in Oceanography, 2014
In the coming decades, fishery resource managers and policy-makers in Pacific Island countries and territories (PICTs) will be increasingly challenged by the need to ensure food security in the context of a changing climate, increasing human pressure on the marine environment, and limited understanding of marine ecosystems and associated resources. These decision-makers must address a pressing and overarching questionhow will pelagic resources and pressures on such resources change over time and space? Answering this question requires ongoing inquiry into critical dimensions of pelagic species and systems, for both the commercial tuna species that are managed by Regional Fishery Management Organizations (RFMOs), as well as nearshore pelagic fishes that support many small-scale fisheries and are managed at national and local levels. Research priorities include generating further insight into life history and physiology, oceanographic context, movement and migration, food webs, ecosystem dynamics and stock status. Concurrently, socioeconomic research is needed to tailor fisheries management strategies to local, national and regional conditions; and improve understanding of incentive structures among players in RFMOs such as the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission. PICTbased scientists and managers are ideally situated to generate new fisheries-relevant data; however, investments are needed to expand the capacity for research, management, and sustainable fisheries development within PICTs. Such capacity building can be accelerated through collaboration between PICTs, RFMOs, and scientific centers of excellence in Distant Water Fishing Nations. Without increased capacity development, this region will be adversely affected by the impacts of climate change and less able to take advantage of opportunities for economic development.
The characteristics of Pacific Island small-scale fisheries
This article is condensed from a paper prepared for the FAO Pacific Regional Consultation on the development of Guidelines for Securing Sustainable Small-Scale Fisheries held at SPC headquarters in Noumea from 12 to 14 June 2012. It provided a starting point for discussion by the workshop participants, as part of their task of providing Pacific Island-specific input into the FAO process for developing a global voluntary instrument on small scale fisheries.