Proposed amendment to CMM2019-05, Annex 6

The number of Japanese bottom trawl fishing vessels which conducted fishing in the Emperor Seamounts in the 2020 fishing season was only one, since two Japanese trawl fishing vessels that had fished in the area for the past years have suspended their operation since November 2019.  It is expected that the operational status of the Japanese trawl fishery is likely to remain unchanged towards the 2021 fishing season. 

Given that only one Japanese bottom trawl fishing vessel is likely to be in operation in the Emperor Seamounts in the 2021 fishing season, Japan proposes amendment to CMM2019-05, Annex 6 “Implementation of the Adaptive Management for North Pacific armorhead” as attached track changes, to increase the number of monitoring blocks from two to four (addition of Yuryaku and Colahan seamounts as monitoring blocks).  The amendment will enable the trawl fishing vessel to continue to conduct monitoring surveys at regular intervals while reducing the current operational difficulties of the trawl fishing vessel that has been  required to move all the way to each of the two monitoring blocks every month.

Under the proposed protocols, the one Japanese trawling vessel will conduct a monitoring survey in one of the four monitoring blocks, which is the nearest from the location of the trawl fishing vessel every month as long as signs of high recruitment are not detected.  When signs of possible high recruitment are detected, Japan will consider increasing the frequency of monitoring surveys while taking into account operational availability of the trawl fishing vessel.