ICCAT (International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas)
Annual meeting held in November every year
(1) Reduction of total allowable catch (TAC) of eastern Atlantic bluefin tuna
(2009 season: 22,000 tons → 2010 season: 13,500 tons)
(2) Prohibition of trading in bluefin tuna caught in violation of the conservation and management measures and strengthening of management of bluefin tuna, including monitoring of tuna farming
(3) Monitoring at-sea transshipment for longline fishing vessels through boarding of observers on carrier vessels; and
(4) Introduction of Catch Documentation System (CDS) for bluefin tunas.
Annual meeting held in November every year
(1) Reduction of total allowable catch (TAC) of eastern Atlantic bluefin tuna
(2009 season: 22,000 tons → 2010 season: 13,500 tons)
(2) Prohibition of trading in bluefin tuna caught in violation of the conservation and management measures and strengthening of management of bluefin tuna, including monitoring of tuna farming
(3) Monitoring at-sea transshipment for longline fishing vessels through boarding of observers on carrier vessels; and
(4) Introduction of Catch Documentation System (CDS) for bluefin tunas.
At the annual meeting in 2011, ICCAT decided
(1) To expand the closed seasons and cloased areas for the FAD operations by purse-seine fishing vessels
in the Gulf of Guinea where a large number of juvenile bigeye and yellowfin inhibit.
(2)To enforce rigourous regulations of large-scale purse seine fishing vessels to alleviate negative impact on bigeye and yellowfin.
(3)To improve the catch documentation system for the bluefin tuna from the paper submission to electric
data provision.
(4) To work for expansion the system’s application to bigeye, yellowfin and skipjack.
(5) To establish and the total allowable catch quota of 110,000 tons for yellofin
IOTC (Indian Ocean Tuna Commission)
Annual meeting held in March every year(1) Regarding bigeye and yellowfin tunas, the number of operating vessels shall be limited to the 2006 level each year during 2007-2011.
(2) Regarding albacore and swordfish, the number of operating vessels shall be limited to the 2007 level each year during 2008-2011.
(3) Monitoring at-sea transshipment through boarding of observers on carrier vessels.
IATTC (Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission)
Annual meeting held in June every year (the 2010 meeting was held in September)Regarding bigeye and bluefin tunas, the following conservation and management measures of 2010 will be continued during 2011-2013.
(Purse-seine fishing)
Total catch prohibition (62 days)
Closed fisheries in specified offshore area (one month)
(Longline fishing)
5% reduction in the bigeye catch quota for 2007
WCPFC (Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission)
Annual meeting held in December every year
As measures for 2010,
(1) Regarding bigeye tuna,
(a) prohibition of operation by purse-seine fishing vessels using FADs for three months, and prohibition of fishing on the high seas enclosed by the exclusive economic zones of Pacific Island States.
(b) in longline fishing, 20% reduction in catch volume from the average value during 2001-2004
(2) regarding bluefin tuna, necessary measures shall be taken not to allow fishing efforts to exceed the levels in 2002-2004
CCSBT (Commission for the Conservation of Southern Bluefin Tuna)
Annual meeting held in October every year
(1) Reduction of TAC for southern bluefin tuna
(2009 season: 11,810 tons → 2010 and 2011 seasons: 9,449 tons x 2
(2) Monitoring at-sea transshipment by longline fishing vessels through boarding of observers on carrier vessels.
(3) Introduction of Catch Documentation System (CDS) for southern bluefin tuna
At the annual meeting in 2013, CCSBT decided to increase the total allowable catch of southern bluefin tuna next year to 12,449 tons and to 14,647 tons per year also in 2015-2017 as shown in the table (TAC by country).
TAC by country
| 2014 | 2015～2017 | (Ref.) 2013 | |
| Japan | 3,361t | 4,737t | 2,703t |
| Australia | 5,151t | 5,665t | 4,713t |
| Korea | 1,036t | 1,140t | 948t |
| Taiwan | 1,036t | 1,140t | 948t |
| Indonesia | 750t | 750t | 709t |
| New Zealand | 910t | 1,000t | 833t |
| South Africa * | 150t | 150t | 40t |
| Philippines | 45t | 45t | 45t |
| EU | 10t | 10t | 10t |
| Research Purpose | - | 10t | - |
| Total | 12,449t | 14,647t | 10,949t |
Joint meetings of tuna RMFOs
The first meeting: Kobe, January 2007; the second meeting: Spain, June-July 2009
The meetings recommended that each RFMO adopt the following measures urgently:(1) RFMOs should take the measures to solve the excessive tuna fishing capacity (e.g. the number of fishing vessels) on a global scale. However, these measures should be implemented in a way not to hamper development of fisheries in developing coastal countries.
(2) In order to achieve thorough implementation of management measures, the five RFMOs should integrate their fishing vessel position management system, observer scheme and Catch Documentation System.
(3) RFMOs should take concerted actions regarding sharks, seabirds and sea turtle caught incidentally in tuna fishing.
Data effective November 2010.
