Arctic Exploratory Fishing

The Council reviewed a discussion paper that reviewed international fishery agreements and provisions regarding exploratory fishing. The Council requested in June 2017 that the paper identify how different international organizations define exploratory fishing, discuss management measures related to exploratory fishing, identify challenges and successes to management, and identify best practices that could be applied to the Central Arctic Ocean and Arctic Management Area. The Council, in the motion, noted their intention to amend the Arctic FMP to provide guidance for exploratory fishing in the Arctic Management Area. The discussion paper summarized exploratory fishing provisions in six international organizations in the North Pacific and Bering Sea, North Atlantic, and Antarctica. After review and discussion, the Council approved a motion to take no further action to amend the Arctic FMP or continue development of the paper. Staff contact is Steve MacLean.