Potential ecological and social benefits of a moratorium on transshipment on the high seas

Ewell, Christopher; Cullis-Suzuki, Sarika; Ediger, Mikaela; Hocevar, John; Miller, Dana; Jacquet, Jennifer

doi:10.1016/j.marpol.2017.04.004

Cited by 55 publications

(42 citation statements)

References 19 publications

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“…Transshipment also enables human rights abuses such as slavery, trafficking, bonded labor, emotional, and physical abuse (Environmental Justice Foundation, 2015; Greenpeace, 2016). Despite growing concerns regarding the sustainability of transshipment (Ewell et al, 2017), the fact that the activity typically occurs far from port, with varying degrees of observer coverage, and limited transparency from fisheries management agencies has prevented a coherent conversation. Here we utilize AIS vessel position data to provide a global view of potential transshipment, identifying the scale at which at-sea transshipment may be occurring, the primary participants, and the broad spatial patterns.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…While transshipment activity involving highly migratory species is regulated by the relevant RFMO, there are transparency concerns as these events take place far from port and with varying levels of observer coverage, where even strict regulations may be difficult to enforce. With this in mind, the transshipment behaviors we've identified in the southern Atlantic are of interest as they occur within the SEAFO convention area, an RFMO that banned at-sea transshipments in 2006 (Ewell et al, 2017;SEAFO, 2017). While we cannot be certain if these encounters and loitering events represent the transshipment of catch, they raise the possibility of unregulated transshipment occurring in regions where transshipment is purportedly regulated.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Even in regions that have adopted regulations on transshipment activities, these regulations may be relatively opaque. For example, in the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission (WCPFC) convention area, which has implemented relatively robust management plans (Ewell et al, 2017), the measures regarding transshipment simultaneously restrict transshipment and provide opportunities to circumvent the restrictions. In this region, reporting is the responsibility of each vessel's flag state, which may be a flag of convenience exercising little oversight (WCPFC, 2009).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Identifying Global Patterns of Transshipment Behavior

Miller¹,

Roan

Hochberg

et al. 2018

Front. Mar. Sci.

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Transshipment at sea, the offloading of catch from a fishing vessel to a refrigerated vessel far from port, can obscure the actual source of the catch, complicating sustainable fisheries management, and may allow illegally caught fish to enter the legitimate seafood market. Transshipment activities often occur in regions of unclear jurisdiction where policymakers or enforcement agencies may be slow to act against a challenge they cannot see. To address this limitation, we processed 32 billion Automatic Identification System (AIS) messages from ocean-going vessels from 2012 to the end of 2017 and identified and tracked 694 cargo vessels capable of transshipping at sea and transporting fish (referred to as transshipment vessels). We mapped 46,570 instances where these vessels loitered at sea long enough to receive a transshipment and 10,233 instances where we see a fishing vessel near a loitering transshipment vessel long enough to engage in transshipment. We found transshipment behaviors associated with regions and flag states exhibiting limited oversight; roughly 47% of the events occur on the high seas and 42% involve vessels flying flags of convenience. Transshipment behavior in the high seas is relatively common, with vessels responsible for 40% of the fishing in the high seas having at least one encounter with a transshipment vessel in this time period. Our analysis reveals that addressing the sustainability and human rights challenges (slavery, trafficking, bonded labor) associated with transshipment at sea will require a global perspective and transnational cooperation.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Identifying Global Patterns of Transshipment Behavior

Miller¹,

Roan

Hochberg

et al. 2018

Front. Mar. Sci.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Some reports suggest that illegal fishing, slavery, and human trafficking are still widespread, and illegal fishing vessels are simply moving further afield to avoid Thailand's new policies and enforcement (Greenpeace, 2016;Hodal, 2016;Walk Free Foundation, 2016). This will continue to provide a substantial challenge for Thai authorities, who will have to consider addressing these issues as what they are: international and transnational criminal and law enforcement activities, rather than fisheries management issues (UNODC, 2011;Ewell et al, 2017). For example, to support member countries in identifying, deterring and disrupting transnational fisheries crime, INTERPOL has established Project Scale (https://www.interpol.int/Crime-areas/ Environmental-crime/Projects/Project-Scale) that is willing to assist member countries upon request.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Thailand's Missing Marine Fisheries Catch (1950–2014)

Derrick

Noranarttragoon²,

Zeller

et al. 2017

Front. Mar. Sci.

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“…The operation, particularly of long-range industrial fisheries, illustrates the impact of these activities on third country taxes and commercial activities, on distant environments, and on realms of different legal or regulatory jurisdiction. The association with illegal, unregulated and unregistered (IUU) fishing and doubtful, even criminal, practices have become a serious concern in recent years [41][42][43][44][45].…”

Section: First Example: Small-scale Fisheries (Ssf)mentioning

confidence: 99%

Ethics to Intersect Civic Participation and Formal Guidance

2019

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Sound governance arrangement in socio-ecological systems (human niche) combines different means of sense-making. The sustainability of human niche-building depends on the governability of the social-ecological systems (SES) forming the niche. Experiences from small-scale marine fisheries and seabed mining illustrate how ethical frameworks, civic participation and formalised guidance combine in the context of a “blue economy”. Three lines of inquiries contextualise these experiences driving research questions, such as “what is the function of ethics for governability?” First, complex-adaptive SES are featured to emphasise the sense-making feedback loop in SES. Actors are part of this feedback loop and can use different means of sense-making to guide their actions. Second, the “Voluntary Guidelines for Sustainable Small-Scale Fisheries” and geoethical thinking are featured to highlight the relevance of actor-centric concepts. Third, Kohlberg’s model of “stages of moral adequacy” and the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) are used to show how to strengthen actor-centric virtue-ethics. Combining these lines of inquiry leads to the conclusion that ethical frameworks, civic participation and formalised guidance, when put in a mutual context, support governability and multi-actor/level policy-making. Further research could explore how creativity can strengthen civic participation, a feature only sketched here.

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Potential ecological and social benefits of a moratorium on transshipment on the high seas

Cited by 55 publications

References 19 publications

Identifying Global Patterns of Transshipment Behavior

Identifying Global Patterns of Transshipment Behavior

Thailand's Missing Marine Fisheries Catch (1950–2014)

Ethics to Intersect Civic Participation and Formal Guidance

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