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Final <strong>Report</strong>
RoO Derogation under the PACP-IEPA
The MSC certification process for the PNA skipjack fishery was approved on 15 December 2011,
following independent adjudication of various objections from interested stakeholders. The
certification will apply to unassociated/free-school skipjack taken in the defined PNA fishery, with a
significant list of conditions and recommendations pertaining to the certification, as well as Chain of
Custody (CoC) requirements. 171 This decision now represents a significant endorsement of the PNA
(and WCPFC) management processes currently in place and their overall effectiveness in sustainably
managing a significant part of WCPO skipjack tuna stocks (close to 60%, and higher in 2010).
Two potential areas of difficulty for the MSC process included:
1) the PNA Vessel Day Scheme (VDS) , the primary management tool of the PNA since the shift
from capacity management under the Palau Arrangement in late 2007 (see below). Concerns
related to the perceived lack of transparency surrounding its operation and reporting, and
apparent lack of success in constraining effort by some parties
2) the lack of formal reference points (target and limit) and harvest control rules (HCRs) in the
responsible RFMO (WCPFC) and by extension, PNA, to guide management of the tuna stocks
under consideration.
The PNA Vessel Days Scheme
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The Vessel Day Scheme (VDS) was adopted by PNA in October 2005 to replace the 205 vessel licence
cap under the Palau Arrangement. A trial operation period was held from 1 December 2006 to 30
November 2007, with the VDS officially coming into effect on 1 December 2007. A schedule of total
allowable effort (TAE) in PNA waters was established, based on agreed 2004 effort levels, and then
partly allowable effort (PAE) in each of the eight individual parties’ EEZ was allocated, based on the
application of 50% biomass distribution and 50% historical effort within EEZs. The agreed TAE (sum
of PAEs) at the time was 28,468 days. An additional allocation was made for FSMA vessel fishing
days (3,907). The first management year ran from 1 December 2007 to 31 December 2008 (13
months), and thereafter for calendar years.
Management of the VDS during the first three management years (2008-2010) was flexible, with
parties able to transfer days between years and between three-year management periods, and to
seek temporary increases with the approval of other parties. An allocation of fishing days was taken
from the total allowable effort (TAE) to cater for FSMA and USMLT vessels. However, a limit on
fishing days was not actually placed on these vessels, except when fishing in their home-party
waters. By a critical decision of the parties in May 2007, fishing days in archipelagic waters were
exempted from the TAE/PAEs. Beginning in the second management year, some parties began to
173
deduct self-determined ‘non-fishing days’ from PAE days used. Some adjustments were also
made to the method of calculating PAEs (e.g. changes to the time series for calculation of biomass
and effort, as well as optional deviation by parties from the 50/50 weighting of biomass and
historical fishing ratios for the calculation of PAEs). However, from the outset, fishing days were to
be standardized by the administrator (PNA) based on vessel length to take in account different sized
171 MSC 2011.
172 Summary drawn from PNA internal report (confidential) – January 2011.
173 Fishing days as defined under the Harmonized Minimum Terms and Conditions include all activity
associated with fishing, and exclude only steaming in transit or to port with gear stowed, or emergencies. The
definition used in the VDS seems to have broadened and is subject to claims by parties for exclusion from
PAEs.
Linpico s.a.r.l. Page 96