Oceanic Fisheries Programme Pacific Community DFAT Harvest Strategy project 10th Heads of Fisheries meeting 14-17th March 2017 Oceanic Fisheries Programme Pacific Community

Contents Background What are harvest strategies? Aims of the project Project structure

Background Key driver: Regional Roadmap for Sustainable Pacific Fisheries, and associated Report Cards Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission (WCPFC) 12th meeting: agreed a work plan to develop ‘harvest strategies’ for key stocks and fisheries Marine Stewardship Council certifications E.g. PNA free school South Pacific albacore longline

Elements of a Harvest Strategy What are Harvest Strategies? Elements of a Harvest Strategy Biomass Effort/Catch TRP LRP Management Objectives What do you want from your fishery? Reference Points and Risk Levels Where do you want to be? (targets) Where do you NOT want to be? (limits) How much do you not want to be there? (risk) Harvest Control Rules Management Strategy Evaluation Testing the HCRs and choosing the “best” Monitoring Strategy Is the HCR performing as you would expect?

What are Harvest Strategies? NOT just science! Member driven exercise Target reference points (where you want to be) Limit reference points (where not to go) Multispecies considerations Performance Measures (How are we doing?) Management Objectives

Approach Need to ‘test’ alternative harvest strategies In particular ‘harvest control rules’ Do rules achieve objectives of managers/stakeholders? Are they ‘robust to uncertainty’? What are the trade-offs between different HCRs? Do this through ‘simulation testing’ Requires a modelling framework to do this = Management Strategy Evaluation (MSE)

Aims of the project Still to receive final approval from NZ Provide support to SPC and FFA to enhance science and member capacity for harvest strategy development Also engage fishing nations in the process, through WCPFC

1. Stakeholder engagement strategy 5. Monitoring strategy framework 4. Modelling framework for MSE developed 1. Stakeholder engagement strategy Tools and capacity to enable informed decision making on management procedures Improved regional management of oceanic tuna stocks Pacific tuna stocks harvested within sustainable limits 2.1 Engagement with SPC/FFA/PNA members 3. Candidate harvest control rules identified ENABLING OUTPUTS Increased value to Pacific Island countries from Pacific tuna fisheries 2.2 LONG - TERM OUTCOMES MEDIUM OUTCOME SHORT TECHNICAL Engagement with other WCPFC members

Main points Staged approach – allow SPC/FFA members to develop harvest strategies that meet objectives Iterative approach to development Secondly, take those options to WCPFC to achieve Commission-wide engagement and adoption Plan: initial focus on skipjack and SP albacore

Output 1 Stakeholder engagement strategy Primarily members but also wider stakeholders. Develop tailored information resources to facilitate information uptake

Outputs 2 Engagement and capacity development with SPC/FFA/PNAO members enhancing capacity and applying the outputs in decision-making on harvest strategy arrangements Subsequently engage other Parties Bring other CCMs and stakeholders up to a level where they can participate in the final decision making processes, such as agreement of compatible measures between high seas and EEZs

Outputs 3 -4 Technical development: Output 3: candidate harvest control rules designed for inclusion in the modelling framework Output 4: Modelling framework developed (computer simulation approach).

Output 5 Monitoring strategy framework: Framework to identify whether things are going to plan – in the real world

Support focus Three key technical positions at SPC 2 modellers 1 ‘advisor’ – focussed on engagement strategy Support for FFA fishery advisor engagement

Time Scale : 5 yr project Start date : April 2017?

1. Stakeholder engagement strategy 5. Monitoring strategy framework 4. Modelling framework for MSE developed 1. Stakeholder engagement strategy Tools and capacity to enable informed decision making on management procedures Improved regional management of oceanic tuna stocks Pacific tuna stocks harvested within sustainable limits 2.1 Engagement with SPC/FFA/PNA members 3. Candidate harvest control rules identified ENABLING OUTPUTS Increased value to Pacific Island countries from Pacific tuna fisheries 2.2 LONG - TERM OUTCOMES MEDIUM OUTCOME SHORT TECHNICAL Engagement with other WCPFC members