MARINE MAMMAL COMMISSION — Annual Report for 1991 



the Commission during the 1991 meetings. The 

 Commission, in turn, called upon members to comply 

 fully with the reporting requirements that had been 

 agreed. 



Krill Assessment and Monitoring — The total 

 catch of krill during the 1990-91 fishing season was 

 357,538 metric tons, down slightly from the catch of 

 374,775 metric tons in 1989-90. Fishing was done by 

 vessels from Chile, Germany, Japan, the Republic of 

 Korea, Poland, Spain, and the Soviet Union. As in 

 the past, most of the catch was by Soviet vessels 

 (275,495 metric tons), followed by Japan (67,582 

 metric tons). All but 746 metric tons was taken from 

 the South Atlantic sector (Statistical Area 48). 



The Living Resources Commission, acting on 

 advice from the Scientific Committee, established a 

 "precautionary" catch limit of 1.5 million metric tons 

 of krill per year in Statistical Area 48. The Scientific 

 Committee had recommended that sub-area limits be 

 established, but the Commission was unable to reach 

 agreement on limits for the three sub-areas. The 

 Commission agreed that, should the total krill catch in 

 sub-areas 48.1, 48.2 and 48.3 exceed 620,000 metric 

 tons in any season (the sum of the historic maximum 

 catches in each of the sub-areas), it would set precau- 

 tionary limits for each of the sub-areas or on such 

 other bases as the Scientific Committee may advise. 



The Scientific Committee again noted the need for 

 haul-by-haul and biological data concerning krill 

 catches, and advised the Commission that some 

 members are not providing the required data. The 

 Commission agreed that such data should be collected 

 and provided to the Secretariat. The Soviet delegation 

 not^ that technical difficulties had prevented them 

 from complying with the data collection requirements. 

 The Japanese and Korean delegations indicated that 

 legislation in their countries made them unable to 

 provide the required haul-by-haul data. 



Scientific Observers — To ensure reliability of 

 length frequency and other biological information 

 concerning krill and fish catches must be collected by 

 trained scientists or technicians. Both the Living 

 Resources Commission and the Scientific Committee 

 had recognized this need and, at its last meeting, the 

 Commission directed the Secretariat to prepare and 



distribute a draft paper on scientific observation for 

 consideration during the 1991 meetings. The Secre- 

 tariat did so and following careful consideration of the 

 paper, the Commission's Standing Committee on 

 Observation and Inspection developed a proposal for 

 an International Scientific Observation System in 

 support of the Convention. Some members of the 

 Commission could not accept certain provisions of the 

 proposed system and it therefore could not be agreed 

 upon. It was agreed that discussions should be 

 continued at the next meeting and that, in the interim, 

 members should initiate establishment of the Interna- 

 tional Observer System by making bilateral arrange- 

 ments to place observers on board commercial fishing 

 vessels operating in the Convention Area. 



New and Developing Fisheries — As noted in the 

 Marine Mammal Conunission's previous Annual 

 Report, the National Marine Fisheries Service issued 

 a permit in 1990 audiorizing a Seattle-based fishing 

 vessel to conduct exploratory fishing for king and 

 stone crabs in Sub-areas 48.1, 48.2, and 48.3 during 

 the 1990-91 fishing season. This action sparked a 

 debate and led to agreement that the Commission 

 would consider at its 1991 meeting elaboration of 

 measures to govern development of new fisheries in 

 the Convention Area. To help prepare for diis 

 discussion, and at the same time ensure that the 

 exploratory crab fishery was consistent with Article n 

 of the Convention, the National Marine Fisheries 

 Service, in consultation with the Marine Manraial 

 Commission and the Department of State, required the 

 permittee to develop and submit a Plan for Research 

 and Data Collection, including an Environmental 

 Impact Assessment, for the proposed exploratory crab 

 fishing. 



Although logistic complications prevented the 

 fishermen from initiating exploratory crab fishing in 

 1991, the United States circulated the research plan 

 and environmental impact assessment to advise the 

 Commission and Scientific Committee of what it had 

 done to ensure that the permitted fishing would be in 

 conformance with Article II of the Convention. 

 Following the U.S. example, the Commission adopted 

 a conservation measure requiring that members, 

 intending to develop a new fishery, notify the Com- 

 mission at least three months in advance of its next 

 meeting, and, with the notification, provide informa- 



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