Policy Brief: The 1 Common Fisheries Resource Analysis Summary

The South China Sea is a semi-enclosed sea, and UNCLOS calls on the coastal states of such seas to coordinate the management and conservation of living resources and to preserve the marine environment.2 Coastal states also have a special responsibility to cooperate on the protection of highly migratory fish species such as Skipjack Tuna.3 Regional countries have already made numerous commitments t. [...] To this end they shall endeavour (a) to coordinate the management, conservation, exploration and exploitation of the living resources of the sea; [and] (b) to coordinate the implementation of their rights and duties with respect to the protection and preservation of the marine environment”. [...] Due to the ongoing political disputes in the South China Sea, and the resulting absence of a Regional Fisheries Management Organisation (RFMO), previous efforts to collectively assess the regional status of fish stocks have been limited. [...] Figure 1 – A summary of the meetings that produced the 1st CFRA CFRA Methodology The 1st CFRA process assessed the status of Skipjack Tuna stocks around the South China Sea. [...] Figure 2 – Approximate catch locations of Skipjack Tuna samples analysed in the 1st CFRA Scientific Conclusions of the 1st CFRA The 1st CFRA concludes that the current fishing levels of adult Skipjack Tuna are probably sustainable in most parts of the South China Sea.