CONCLUSIONS 49 



fully utilized. For reasons indicated above we believe thai the (on- 

 tinuation of the abstention principle, as applied to halibut and 

 salmon, is a rational means of apportioning the fishery resources of 

 this area. As new fisheries become fiUly utilized, by whatever coun- 

 try, seriotis consideration shoiUd be given to the application of the 

 abstention principle to that stock of fish. 



Where two or more countries have participated in the develop- 

 ment and ftdl luilization of a stock of fish, then those countries 

 should be entitled to share in that stock. Problems of allocation of 

 the catch ^vill arise. Yet the problems have been solved in the Fur 

 Seal Treaty, and in the Salmon Treaty between the United States 

 and Canada, and should be solvable for other fish stocks of the North 

 Pacific. 



One of the most important reasons for the difficulty in arriving at 

 a common set of objectives for the management of the North Pacific 

 fisheries is the lack of adequate data concerning the biological, eco- 

 nomic, and social aspects of the fisheries. Research in all of these 

 fields should be substantially increased and better coordinated. In 

 particular, there should be a more efficient exchange of data and 

 pooling of research resources between the four principal participants 

 in this fishery. To facilitate this, ^\e urge that either as part of the 

 present negotiations, or possibly as a next step, an effort be made to 

 create at least a data gathering and research coordinating interna- 

 tional agency in which Japan, Canada, the United States, and the 

 Soviet Union would all participate. Consideration of the method of 

 operation of successful international commissions indicates that the 

 best solution ^vould be for the Commission to engage its own re- 

 search staff which would be responsible to the Commission through 

 a director. 



Such a change in organization and staff would be especially impor- 

 tant in aid of the orderly exploitation of undeveloped fisheries and 

 in their eventual management. A primary requirement, of course, 

 for such provisions would be that all nations or all states which par- 

 ticipate in these fisheries should develop a system of acctirate records 

 of their landings by species, the amount of gear run, or the amotuit 

 of effort expended and the locations where gear is run and the 

 catches are made. 



Finally, the conclusion reached by Ricker (1962) that the sea 

 groAvth of salmon far exceeds natural mortality during the marine 



