Contact:
Fisheries Information Section
Section Information halieutique
SPC/CPS
BP D5, 98848 Nouméa Cedex
95 Promenade Roger Laroque,
Anse Vata
New-Caledonia / Nouvelle-Calédonie
Tel.: +687 26.20.00
Fax: +687 26.38.18

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Produced by the Information Section, Marine Resources Division, SPC, B.P. D5, 98848 Noumea Cedex, New Caledonia. Fax: (687) 263818; E-mail: cfpinfo@spc.int with financial assistance from France.

Editorial

Accidental longline catches of endangered species or protected ones like turtles carry major economic risks: many markets could be lost if action is not taken by fishers to conserve endangered species and thus protect the biodiversity of the ocean. During the Pacific Island Maritime Training Institutions and Maritime Authorities (APIMTIMA) meeting in Fiji in May 2004, the SPC Marine Resources Division Training Section presented a training manual on “Protected marine species and the tuna longline fishery in the Pacific Islands”. This manual addresses the bycatch issue in the longline tuna fishery and hopefully will raise awareness of Pacific Island fishermen on this issue, for their benefit and that of protected marine species.

At a meeting in February 2004, fisheries experts and managers reviewed the topic of safety-at-sea, and agreed that it was essential that awareness work be continued, but especially that strong political support and national involvement from Pacific Island countries was needed so that appropriate regulations could be introduced. The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) and the SPC have been collaborating on this issue for a number of years now. In ‘News from in and around the Pacific', Bob Gillett, a consultant who has over 25 years of experience in the region and who is well known to our readers, revisits safety-at-sea, with particular reference to small fishing vessels.

Jean-Paul Gaudechoux
Fisheries Information Adviser (jeanpaulg@spc.int)