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ACAP’s Fifth Session of its Meeting of Parties in Tenerife hears of two likely new Parties on its first day

ACAP’s Fifth Session of its Meeting of Parties in the Canaries on the island of Tenerife commenced yesterday with speeches of welcome on behalf of Spain as the host country by Mr Pablo Saavedra (Director General, Coastal and Marine Sustainability (Sostenibilidad de la Costa y del Mar,  Ministerio de Agricultura, Alimentación y Medio Ambiente) and Dr Eduardo Balguerías (Director, Spanish Institute of Oceanography - Instituto Español de Oceanografía).  Director Pablo Saavedra noted that the protection of marine areas and adequate management is essential for reducing anthropogenic threats jeopardizing the conservation status of seabirds.  Dr Eduardo Balguerías recalled the early research on incidental seabird by-catch by fishing fleets operating in ​​CCAMLR jurisdiction, and the way it triggered an alarm on the real magnitude of this conservation problem. He noted that since then there has been great progress in conservation, especially in relation to the development of by-catch mitigation measures and the subsequent adoption of conservation and management measures by Regional Fisheries Management Organisations (RFMOs).  

In their speeches they made mention of the Critically Endangered Balearic Shearwater Puffinus mauretanicus, endemic as a breeding bird to Spain’s Balaearic Islands and the most-recently listed ACAP species.  It was also noted that the Canary Islands support a number of breeding procellariiform species.

From left:  Marco Favero (Chair ACAP Advisory Committee), Pablo Saavedra (Director General, Ministerio de Agricultura, Alimentación y Medio Ambiente), Eduardo Balguerías (Instituto Español de Oceanografía) and Warren Papworth (Executive Secretary) during the opening of MoP5

MoP5’s Spanish hosts smile for the camera

From left:  Pablo Saavedra, Juan José Areces and Maria Isabel López (Ministerio de Agricultura, Alimentación y Medio Ambiente), Eduardo Balguerías (Instituto Español de Oceanografía), José Manuel (Pep) Arcos (BirdLife International/SEO) and Roberto Sarralde (Instituto Español de Oceanografía)

 Following a break, the meeting elected Mr Ricardo Losa Giménez (Ministerio de Asuntos Exteriores y de Cooperación, Spain) as its Chair.  Dr Marco Favero, Chair of ACAP’s Advisory Committee acted as the meeting’s Vice Chair.  Following several house-keeping matters the morning’s deliberations concentrated on a system for allowing observers from member economies to attend meetings, the budget for the next triennium and the scale of contributions that are made by Parties to the Agreement.

In the afternoon, the Session welcomed news from Namibia and the USA, present at MoP5 as observers, that progress was being achieved in both their respective countries to becoming Parties to the Agreement, with the possibility this might happen in the near future.

The day closed with Spain hosting the welcoming dinner in El Bulán, a local restaurant.

John Cooper, ACAP Information Officer, 05 May 2015, updated 06 May 2015

ACAP’s Fifth Session of its Meeting of Parties gets started in Tenerife with a Heads of Delegation meeting

With all 13 Parties to the Agreement attending the Fifth Session of its Meeting of Parties (MoP5) in Santa Cruz de Tenerife in Spain’s Canary Islands there was a full house for the customary Heads of Delegation meeting that took place yesterday afternoon before the session proper gets underway today.

Before getting down to discussing the week's proceedings, it was an opportunity for greetings and introductions in the main salon of the Iberostar Grand Hotel Mencey, well set out by the session's Spanish hosts.

 

The Grand Hotel Mencey in Santa Cruz  

 Juan Pablo Seco Pon, ACAP South American News Correspondent, adjusts the welcome banner at the entrance to the meeting room

Heads of Delegation get acquainted... 

...and commence their meeting

Photographs by John Cooper

John Cooper, ACAP Information Officer, 04 May 2015

Australia produces a guide to developing new seabird mitigation devices in trawl fisheries

The Australian Fisheries Management Authority (AFMA) has released a new ‘Guide to developing new seabird mitigation devices in trawl fisheries’, which aims to make it easier for trawl operators to trial new seabird mitigation devices to reduce seabird interactions and improve operational efficiencies and crew safety.

Minimising interactions between seabirds and otter trawl fishing operations is recognised as a priority for AFMA and the fishing industry.  A recent AFMA’s report found that 600 mm warp deflectors (pinkies) reduce heavy interactions between seabirds and warp wires by 75%.

As a result, AFMA has implemented seabird management plans (SMPs) for all otter board trawl vessels operating in the Southern and Eastern Scalefish and Shark Fishery (SESSF). Each vessel’s SMP lists the AFMA approved seabird mitigation measures for that vessel, including the compulsory use of 600 mm diameter pinkies.

There is increasing interest from fishers in developing new mitigation devices or enhancing the current AFMA approved devices to improve operational efficiencies, crew safety and further reduce seabird interactions.  New or modified mitigation devices will need to be approved by AFMA for each SMP.  New or modified mitigation devices will need to be assessed to ensure they meet the required bycatch reduction target and maintain a safe working environment for crew.

The guide outlines the necessary steps to plan, develop, trial and implement a new seabird mitigation device in the SESSF otter board trawl fisheries.  A number of new seabird mitigation devices are currently undergoing at sea trials, including a bird baffler device and water jet sprayer booms and AFMA says that early results of the trials are promising.

Black-browed Albatrosses gather behind a trawler, photograph by Graham Parker

Click here for the new guide.

Above article reproduced from World Fishing & Aquaculture.

John Cooper, ACAP Information Officer, 03 May 2015

First time in Spain. ACAP Fifth Session meets next week in the Canary Islands

ACAP’s Fifth Session (MoP5) of its Meeting of Parties - the decision-making body of the Agreement -- will take place from Monday to Friday next week in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain.  The meeting will be held in the Iberostar Grand Hotel Mencey.

All 13 Parties to the Agreement will attend, as will observers from Canada, Namibia and the United States of America.  In addition representatives from the Convention on Migratory Species and BirdLife International will be present (click here for a list of meeting participants).

The Session will be chaired by Mr Ricardo Losa Giménez (Ministerio de Asuntos Exteriores y de Cooperación, Spain) with Dr Marco Favero, Chair of ACAP’s Advisory Committee as the meeting’s Vice Chair.

MoP5 will hear the report of its Advisory Committee, which last met in Punta del Este, Uruguay in September last year (click here).  Other matters for discussion include the nomination of Chile’s endemic Pink-footed Shearwater Puffinus creatopus for listing as ACAP’s 31st species and second shearwater, criteria for listing and de-listing species on Annex 1, lethal experimentation and identifying prospective new Parties to the Agreement.

 

Pink-footed Shearwater, photograph by Peter Hodum

Click here to access the provisional agenda for the meeting and here to download the 29 meeting documents.

The last Meeting of the Parties was held in Lima, Peru in April 2012, following previous sessions in Peru (2009), New Zealand (2006) and Australia (2004) (click here).

John Cooper, ACAP Information Officer, 02 May 2015

The Indian Ocean Tuna Commission and the Albatross and Petrel Agreement renew their Memorandum of Understanding

The Indian Ocean Tuna Commission (IOTC) has been holding its 19th Session in Busan, Korea this week.  Among the matters discussed was a proposal to renew the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the Commission and the Albatross and Petrel Agreement (click here).

The original MoU between the IOTC and ACAP came into force on 3 April 2009 at the 13th Meeting of the Commission to last for a period of five years (click here), and has thus expired.  Following intersessional discussion by the IOTC Members a slightly revised version has been adopted in Busan for a further five-year period.

The new MoU will continue to facilitate cooperation between the IOTC and the ACAP Secretariat with a view to supporting efforts to minimise the incidental bycatch of albatrosses and petrels listed in Annex 1 of the Agreement within the IOTC area of competence.

Amsterdam Albatross, an Indian Ocean endemic, photograph by Kirk Zufelt 

The following text is taken from the MoU adopted at the IOTC meeting:

“Both sides may establish and maintain consultation, co-operation and collaboration in respect of matters of common interest to both sides for the:

a) development of systems for collecting and analysing data, and exchanging information concerning the incidental bycatch of seabirds in the area of competence of the IOTC;

b) exchange of information regarding management approaches relevant to the conservation of albatrosses and petrels;

c) implementation of education and awareness programmes for fishers who operate in areas where albatrosses and petrels may be encountered;

d) design, testing and implementation of seabird bycatch mitigation measures relevant to fishing operations in the area of competence of the IOTC;

e) development of training programs on conservation techniques and measures to mitigate threats affecting albatrosses and petrels; and

f) exchange of expertise, techniques and knowledge relevant to the conservation of albatrosses and petrels in the area of competence of the IOTC; and

g) reciprocal participation with observer status at the relevant meetings of each organisation.”

John Cooper, ACAP Information Officer, 01 May 2015

The Agreement on the
Conservation of Albatrosses and Petrels

ACAP is a multilateral agreement which seeks to conserve listed albatrosses, petrels and shearwaters by coordinating international activity to mitigate known threats to their populations.

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