SPC Fisheries Newsletter #105 — April/June 2003 SPC ACTIVITIES Provided As Customary Acknowl- Edgement to Dignitaries, Or Eaten by the Crew
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Number 105 (April–June 2003) ISSN 0248-076X Welcome to the latest issue of the SPC Fisheries Newsletter.I would like to draw your attention to the recent SPC publication "Horizontal Longline Fishing manual". The main purpose of this manual is to introduce the horizontal longline fishing method to Pacific Island fishermen,and assist those currently SPC activities Page 2 involved to improve their fishing success,particularly in commercial or semi- commercial situations. This manual is intended to act as a guide to the principles and techniques of good horizontal tuna longline fishing.Environmental and conservation issues and concerns have also been included to raise News from in and around awareness and to present ways to minimise impacts on unwanted species the region Page 15 or the environment as a result of horizontal tuna longline fishing activities. Michel Blanc presents on page 33 the results of the review of the SPC/Nelson Polytechnic Pacific Island Fisheries Officers Training Course. FAD Research Project: Summary It was considered essential by fisheries administrations that a of results at the end of the second comprehensive review be undertaken, with regards to the major changes fisheries in the Pacific have undergone over the last two decades with the year (June 2003) development of subsistence, artisanal and industrial sectors. by Lindsay Chapman, Ian Bertram Jean-Paul Gaudechoux and Brendon Pasisi Page 19 Fisheries Information Adviser ([email protected]) Aquaculture update for Vanuatu by Ben Ponia Page 27 Conservation through cooperation – The seabird bycatch issue in New Zealand by Alec Woods Page 31 SPC/Nelson course freshened up by Michel Blanc Page 33 The long awaited tuna longline has now been printed. It illustrates all the different aspects of tuna longlining and the gear used. It is available for download on the SPC website or as a hard copy from the Fisheries Development Section SPC ACTIVITIES FISHERIES DEVELOPMENT SECTION During the second quarter of 2003, Fisheries Development Officer Steve Beverly spent two weeks in Honolulu, Hawaii, to renew his US Coast Guard master’s certificate for operating motor vessels of up to 100 gross tons and to do a course for STCW-95. The STCW-95 course included firefighting, personal survival, personal safety and social responsibility, and first aid and CPR. Marshall Islands longlining training Fisheries Development Officer species were taken during the marlin weighed 184 kg. William Sokimi has completed workshop. The main saleable Byproduct species and other his assignment in the Marshall species were bigeye tuna (18 tunas were either sold to the Islands where he worked with fish weighing 451 kg), yellowfin MIMRA fish market, donated as staff of the Marshall Islands tuna (20 fish weighing 259 kg), payment for services rendered, Marine Resources Authority blue marlin (14 fish (MIMRA) and local fishermen. weighing 432 kg), mahi mahi (48 fish The assignment was to train weighing 305 kg), and MIMRA staff and interested wahoo (14 fish weigh- local fishermen in tuna longline ing 209 kg). fishing gear and techniques using a monofilament set-up on Export trials were the MIMRA training vessel, FV undertaken through Wa-Bal. the Marshall Islands Fishing Venture (MIFV) Other aims of the project includ- company. A 39 kg big- ed assessing of the FV Wa-bal as eye tuna was export- a tuna longliner, making sug- ed to Japan after the gestions on what would be a first trip. Bigeye tuna suitable vessel or vessel para- and blue marlin from meters for developing a local subsequent trips were fishery, and training all partici- exported to the US. pants in the correct on-board handling and preservation of The total exported the catch. bigeye tuna was 272 kg, while exported blue MIMRA had 32 participants organised for the workshop on tuna longlining, but the num- ber dropped to 23 in the early stages of the project. The first sessions covered the different tools and fishing gear to be used during the project, and the theory of the fishing technique. Participants were then divided into three groups for practical training. Each group completed two, six- week-long fishing trips. In total, 40 sets were made of the 200- hook longline over 26 fishing days. As the longline was short, two sets were generally made per day, one in the morning and one in the evening. Fishing was not great — only 270 fish of all Top: Gaffing and landing a good size bigeye tuna Bottom: Setting the longline 2 SPC Fisheries Newsletter #105 — April/June 2003 SPC ACTIVITIES provided as customary acknowl- edgement to dignitaries, or eaten by the crew. The FV Wa-Bal, was assessed as being marginally suitable as a tuna longline vessel, provided several improvements to work- ing conditions were made. The stability of the vessel in moder- ate to rough sea conditions needs to be improved. The elec- trical system on the vessel needs modifying, including the installation of a small generator to keep the batteries charged. Another limiting factor is the small size of the fish hold which hold around 1.5 to 2 mt of fish Cleaning the fish hold on FV Wa Bal in ice. FADs off Nauru In late June, William travelled to the deployment of the FADs and The Section’s deepwater echo Nauru to assist the Nauru to train local staff in all aspects of sounder was used for the site Fisheries and Marine Resources the work, including site surveys, surveys, with the transducer Authority (NFMRA) with their selecting suitable FAD sites, and mounted on the side of one of FAD programme. NFMRA had rigging and deploying FADs. NFMRA’s vessels. Three site materials for three FADs. They surveys were conducted to fill in asked the Section to assist with the gaps from previous survey work by SPC. While the site sur- veys were being done, two spar buoys were being fabricated on- island at the NFMRA workshop. Once the sites were identified, three FADs were rigged, two spar buoys and one modified Indian Ocean design. Two FADs were rigged for 2500 m and the other for 1500 m, allowing for a 20 per cent scope in the rope length. All the materials for the three FADs, including three tonnes of 16 cm reject mooring chain for use as FAD anchors, were loaded onto a barge for deploy- ment. The barge was towed to the deployment sites by a tug- boat. At each side, the buoy sys- tem was deployed and the rope paid out as the barge was towed in a circle, dropping the FAD Echo sounder transducer anchor as it came back to the mounted off the side of deployment site. the NFMRA vessel SPC Fisheries Newsletter #105 — April/June 2003 3 SPC ACTIVITIES Left: Fabricating a steel spar buoy Right: Materials for three FADs being loaded onto a barge Tokelau needs assessment Fisheries Development Adviser, each atoll. Each Aumaga had The longline-caught fish would Lindsay Chapman, travelled to the same basic interests — be frozen onshore, and trans- Tokelau in early April as part of developing domestic tuna fish- ported via MV Tokelau to buyers an SPC mission. The journey to ing operations to create employ- in Samoa or American Samoa. Tokelau via the local cargo/pas- ment and income generating senger vessel MV Tokelau from opportunities. The Fisheries Development Samoa took around 30 hours. Section is working with Tokelau Passengers (and cargo) were During the discussions it in identifying funding for this ferried ashore in a flat-bottom became clear that the approach work. The plan is to work with aluminium outboard-powered to development needed to cover and train men from each atoll to work skiff through a channel to not only employment and work as crew on the vessels, the atoll. Lindsay spent one day income generation but also food and develop and implement a on each of the three atolls, travel- security. It came out of the meet- FAD programme. The Section ling between atolls on MV Tokelau ings that the subsistence tuna also will be working with the at night. fishery needed a FAD pro- Forum Fisheries Agency later in gramme. Proposals were dis- the year on a national tuna Lindsay met with various cussed for commercial longline development and management groups, including the Aumaga tuna fishing conducted from an plan for Tokelau. (able-bodied men’s group) on alia-type vessel on each atoll. MV Tokelau 4 SPC Fisheries Newsletter #105 — April/June 2003 SPC ACTIVITIES Work skiff used to transport people and cargo between MV Tokelau and shore Alia-type catamaran longline vessels in Tokelau Update on the FAD research project Fisheries Development Adviser, ly were surveyed in 2002. In and reported on in the next Lindsay Chapman, conducted a 2003, the number of households issue of Fisheries Newsletter. second round of community sur- found and surveyed dropped to veys in Rarotonga and Aitutaki 180 in Rarotonga and 211 in Fisheries Development Officer in the Cook Islands with assis- Aitutaki. Where possible, the Steve Beverly went to Niue and tance from Ms Tuaine Turua reasons for households not being the Cook Islands to assist the (Tutu) from the Ministry of found was documented so that Niue Department of Agricul- Marine Resources. The aim was these households could be sur- ture, Forestry, and Fisheries and to resurvey the same households veyed during the third survey, the Cook Islands Ministry of (and same person if possible) as scheduled for 2004. The survey Marine Resources in rigging were surveyed 12 months earlier data collected will be analysed and deploying FADs to replace using exactly the same survey sheet, to see if there had been any changes in the fishing practices over the 12-month period, espe- cially in relation to fishing out- side the reef and fishing around FADs.