U.S. participation in conservation of international fishery resources 403 



not participated in the research and regulatory programmes, the returns to the 

 regulating countries would be so reduced that they would not be justified in main- 

 taining these expensive programs. 



A solution for the problems of this area finally was developed in the North Pacific 

 Fisheries Convention negotiated between Japan. Canada, and United States, and 

 ratified in 1953. This convention was designed to cover all the joint fishery problems 

 of the three contracting parties in the north Pacific area. It concerns all stocks of 

 fish under substantial exploitation by two or more of the contracting parties, with 

 the decisions and recommendations concerning regulation of such stocks being con- 

 fined to the parties engaged in their substantial exploitation. It sets up a new prin- 

 ciple, " abstention ", which provides that, where a stock offish is being fully utilized 

 by one or more of the contracting parties, and where such parties have enacted and 

 are enforcing fishery conservation regulations and limitations developed through 

 extensive scientific research, other contracting parties not sharing in exploitation of 

 that stock should continue to abstain from participation. 



To facihtate the administration of this abstention principle a provisional line was 

 drawn in the north Pacific Ocean to separate the stocks of salmon of American and 

 Asian origin, and a mandate placed upon the commission to undertake immediate 

 research to verify or improve this provisional line. It was further provided that, in 

 the event of the commission failing within a reasonable period of time to reach 

 unanimous agreement on such a line, the matter should be referred to a special com- 

 mittee of scientists consisting of three competent and disinterested persons, no one 

 of whom should be a national of a contracting party, selected by mutual agreement 

 of all parties. Majority determination by such a committee would determine the 

 recommendation to be made by the commission. 



OBJECTIVES OF THE CONVENTIONS 

 The primary objective of the various international fishery conventions, involving 

 north American countries, has been consistently confined to conservation ; that is, 

 to making possible the maximum sustainable productivity of the aquatic resources 

 covered by the conventions. It is obvious that such conservation programmes have 

 many economic implications and involve economic considerations. The results of any 

 such program must be in products useful to man, and regulations must be adapted 

 to the practical operations of the fishery. However, the economic considerations 

 have been secondary. The conventions provide for conservation management, not 

 economic management. 



POLICIES 



In the process of studying the various problems, developing practical solutions, 

 and operating the commissions, certain policies have been evolved and have proved 

 themselves. The principal such policies are the following: 



1 Specific Conventions for Specific Problems 



' The fishery conventions have been individually tailored for specific situations 

 and problems. As has been pointed out above, the first conventions covered 

 single species and areas. As the procedures developed for these conventions 

 proved successful, it has been possible to negotiate conventions covering a 



