CCAMLR Secretariat

Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) fishing is a global problem, and it occurs in all oceans, estimated by some to be worth tens of billions of dollars a year. The use of the term “IUU” was first used by CCAMLR in 1997, and in 1999 this term was adopted by the international community in the Food and Agriculture Organizations (FAO)’s International Plan of Action to Prevent, Deter, and Eliminate IUU Fishing in 2001.

In earlier blogs we have explored the actions that CCAMLR took to deal with specific challenges arising from fishing activities, but throughout the last 40 years the organisation has also taken precautionary measures to guard against a wide range of other impacts, both known and possible.
For instance, in 1990 CCAMLR passed Resolution 7/IX which endorsed the goals of UN General Assembly Resolution 44/225 and determined there would be no expansion of large-scale pelagic driftnet fishing in the Convention Area. This was a precautionary measure since at the time there was no such activity in CCAMLR waters.

Most fishing methods have some impact on the ecosystem, either indirectly by removing the target species which is a food for other species or directly by catching or otherwise interacting with non-target species. These can be marine mammals and seabirds or fish, squid and other marine organisms.