MALAYSIA: Sankina Aquaculture has become the first shrimp producer in Malaysia to land Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC) certification.

Sankina Aquaculture Sdn Bhd received the ASC certification after it worked with WWF Malaysia to put the Aquaculture Improvement Project (AIP) in place in 2019.

The AIP was supported by Marina Bay Sands and WWF-Singapore to assist aquaculture farms in achieving ASC certification and advancing their sustainability journey.

Under the programme, Sankina Aquaculture conducted restoration and preservation activities for the mangrove areas within and adjacent to their farm site, implementing strict protocol where wastewater is pre-treated to manage pollution and setting up systems to improve workers' welfare.

As a result of the mangrove preservation efforts, sightings of migratory birds surrounding the farm have increased, according to a WWF Malaysia statement on Monday (June 19).

Sakina also received support from the Sabah Fisheries Department leading the way for Sankina Aquaculture to be awarded the ASC certification, making it the first shrimp farm in Malaysia to receive the globally recognised eco-label certification.

Sankina Aquaculture managing director Jenny Ou said the certification was a testimony for their ongoing efforts towards sustainability and responsible business practices.

"This recognition is a testament to our deep commitment to preserving the planet and ensuring a brighter future for generations to come. Achieving ASC certification is a significant milestone in our journey towards sustainability," she said.

Global Lead ASC Improver Programme's Roy van Daatselaar hoped that the certification would inspire other farms to follow on a similar "improvement pathway”.

Meanwhile, WWF Malaysia chief executive officer Sophia Lim said aquaculture development can thrive when managed carefully without causing harm to the environment, especially in vulnerable mangrove areas in Malaysia.

SOURCE: The Star

USA: Indian Ocean Tuna Commission members failed to make progress on key measures to protect declining yellowfin tuna (Thunnus albacares), like reducing annual catches and limiting the use of harmful fish aggregating devices (FADs), during their annual meeting.

Although the commission declared yellowfin tuna overfished in 2015, to date, the intergovernmental regional management body has failed to curb overfishing, bringing the stock closer to collapse. Objections from the European Union helped nullify an ambitious plan adopted by the IOTC in February to limit the use of drifting FADs: Objecting parties don’t have to implement the measure, and the EU tuna fleet, which has historically pulled in the largest yellowfin tuna catches in the Indian Ocean, is the biggest deployer of DFADs in the region.

The commission declared the Indian Ocean bigeye tuna (T. obesus) stock overfished in 2022, and at its meeting in May parties agreed to a 15% reduction from 2021 levels in the permitted annual catch; they also adopted protective measures for seabirds and marine mammals at the meeting, but not for sharks.

The organization responsible for managing tuna fishing quotas in the Indian Ocean failed to make headway on saving the sector’s most imperiled species, yellowfin tuna (Thunnus albacares), at the body’s annual meeting this month. Members of the Indian Ocean Tuna Commission (IOTC) did, however, take steps to prevent another tuna stock, bigeye tuna (T. obesus), from going the yellowfin way.

The end value of tuna fisheries from the Indian Ocean is around $8 billion annually, according to an analysis by US-based think tank The Pew Charitable Trusts.

The gathering of IOTC parties, which include coastal states that border the Indian Ocean and distant-water fishing entities, most notably the European Union, was held in Mauritius from May 8-12. There was little progress on key issues surrounding yellowfin, like reducing annual catch for the overfished stock and limiting the use of harmful fish-aggregating devices (FADs) used by purse seine fishing vessels.

Although the IOTC declared yellowfin tuna overfished in 2015, to date, the intergovernmental regional management body has failed to curb overfishing, particularly the capture of juveniles. The Indian Ocean yellowfin population could be headed for collapse as early as 2026, conservation group Planet Tracker says.

“When it comes to yellowfin tuna, we are eating our capital,” Umair Shahid, WWF’s Indian Ocean tuna specialist, said in a statement. “Unless we take action now to radically reduce annual catch, there won’t be enough stock left to harvest in less than 10 years.”

Yellowfin tuna (Thunnus albacares) caught by fishermen in Seychelles. The Indian Ocean yellowfin population could be headed for collapse as early as 2026, conservation group Planet Tracker says. Image by Joe Laurence/Seychelles News Agency via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 4.0).

The European Union, which operates a purse seine fleet in the region and has historically pulled in the largest share of yellowfin tuna, is promoting the commercial interests of its fleet despite the clear threat, critics say. This has pitted many coastal states against the bloc, which deploys vastly disproportionate lobbying muscle during tuna negotiations.

In recent years, the Maldives, a small island nation in the western Indian Ocean, has led a group of parties in proposing measures that target the industrial purse seine fleet. The collective catch of artisanal fishers from dozens of coastal countries now rivals the share of the EU’s industrial fishing fleet, pulling in about a third of the tuna catch. But observers say these small-scale fisheries support coastal communities and contribute to local economies, while the large purse seiners pull in profits for big companies.

Mongabay earlier reported on EU-based companies reflagging vessels to smaller island nations like Seychelles and Mauritius to circumvent IOTC regulations and benefit from allocations and concessions granted to smaller island nations by the regional body.

In February, during a special session on FADs, countries worked on a proposal to reduce the use of drifting fish-aggregating devices (DFADs), free-floating platforms that attract fish. These DFADs allow purse seiners to scoop up large schools of tuna and other fish, netting large numbers of juveniles. This indiscriminate fishing method hampers the population recovery of yellowfin populations.

The EU objected to stricter DFAD measures adopted this year, effectively nullifying the ambitious plan adopted by a two-thirds majority in February. A handful of other countries, including coastal states Kenya and Oman, also filed objections. Both these countries declared their intentions to introduce purse seiners into their fleets and increase their catches of yellowfin tuna.

Objecting parties are not obliged to enforce the resolution for their fleets. According to an analysis by BLOOM, a France-based nonprofit, the EU’s Indian Ocean tuna fleet is responsible for 95% of tuna catches made around FADs.

Other tuna stocks could face a similar crisis without effective measures from the IOTC. No progress was made on sustainably managing populations of skipjack tuna (Katsuwonus pelamis), a species that, like yellowfin and bigeye, the IOTC has declared as being fished at unsustainable levels.

But the body did take action on bigeye tuna. The regional management body declared the Indian Ocean bigeye stock overfished in 2022. At the annual meeting, parties agreed to a 15% reduction from 2021 levels in the permitted annual bigeye catch.

Another silver lining from this year’s meeting was the IOTC’s adoption of electronic monitoring standards that rely on artificial intelligence and remote sensing to track catch volumes and species. This will promote science-based decision-making at the IOTC, according to supporters of the standards like Glen Holmes, a senior officer for The Pew Charitable Trusts’ international fisheries program.

“They will expand much-needed monitoring and increase data collection on fisheries that operate far from the reach of land-based enforcement officers and scientists,” Holmes said. “These standards set a new precedent that should be mirrored in other oceans.”

Delegates to the May meeting also accepted two proposals aimed at reducing the bycatch of seabirds and marine mammals like dolphins and whales. However, they did not adopt a resolution banning the use of fishing gear designed to target sharks that the Maldives put forward.

“Unfortunately, all this progress may be overshadowed by IOTC’s failure, yet again, to reach a compromise to get management of yellowfin and skipjack tuna under control,” Holmes said.

Source: https://news.mongabay.com/2023/05/as-one-indian-ocean-tuna-stock-faces-collapse-nations-scramble-to-save-others/

MALDIVES: The World Bank has approved a USD64.8 million project to strengthen regional fisheries management in the South-West Indian Ocean (SWIO) region to improve the competitiveness of the Maldives fisheries sector.

The Transforming Fisheries Sector Management in South-West Indian Ocean Region and Maldives Project (TransFORM) aims to improve fisheries management in the region, and strengthen the regional collaboration by producing and sharing knowledge, data, and research to support evidence-based decision-making; improving fisheries and fish stock assessments; providing targeted capacity development; and promoting effective collaboration with other fisheries management regional initiatives.

Speaking about the project, the World Bank Country Director for Maldives, Nepal, and Sri Lanka, Faris H. Hadad-Zervos said, “Maldives’ strong track record in sustainable fisheries management can serve as a model for other countries in the South-West Indian Ocean region.”

“This project also promotes a larger role for small and medium enterprises in the fisheries and allied sectors such as mariculture and aquaculture and is part of the overall strategic engagement between the Government of Maldives and the World Bank to address the weak investment and business climate that contains private sector development in the country.”

While the project will build national capacities, skill and regulations to improve fisheries sector governance, the longer-term aim is for the Maldives to serve as a regional enabler providing knowledge and capacity building support to the SWIO region.

“This project supports greater regional cohesion and cooperation and provides a platform for mutual learning and support,” said Sachiko Kondo, World Bank Task Team Leader.

“Appropriate skilling of stakeholders, developing national capacities to address challenges such as biosecurity, decarbonization, and promoting environmentally sound production and value chains are all part of the fisheries sector management and governance agenda. The project will build such capacities for the benefit of Maldives and the wider southwest Indian Ocean region,” said Tapas Paul, World Bank Lead Environmental Specialist and Co-Task Team Leader.

The project will be implemented by the regional Indian Ocean Commission and Maldives Ministry of Fisheries, Marine Resources, and Agriculture.

The total financing of USD64.8 million is comprised of a USD12 million grant to Indian Ocean Commission, and a USD26.4 million grant with another USD26.4 million credit to the Maldives from the International Development Association (IDA); the World Bank’s concessional credit window for developing nations.

Source: MBR