Since end 2005 vessels of the PFA are active in the Southern Pacific jack mackerel fishery outside the Chilean EEZ. This high seas fishery is known by the global fishing community since many years, in particular since the 70's and 80's, when the Soviet fleet developed a large fishery in this area. By the collapse of the Soviet Union the Soviet fleet left the area and in a lesser extent other fleets entered into this fishery. The PFA is one of them. Since 2006 negotiations between the relevant coastal and fishing nations have been ongoing in order to develop the South Pacific Regional Fisheries Management Organization (SPRFMO) with the objective to develop effective fisheries management in the South Pacific Ocean. In November 2009 the convention text has been agreed in the SPRFMO meeting in Auckland, New Zealand (where also the secretariat of the organization is located) and the ratification procedure in the member countries has started. The EU is member of this Regional Management organization. In attendance of a fully fledged management policy for the Pacific jack mackerel fishery based on sound scientific advice, the meeting of the SP RFMO decided in May 2007 for interim measures in the area. These interim measures in fact limited the fisheries to the fishing effort exerted during 2007 and the possibility to enter the fishery in 2008 and 2009 for the countries with a historical jack mackerel fishery on this area. The interim measures have been in place until the end of 2009. In the SPRFMO meeting of November 2009 the countries decided for a prolongation of the interim measure with 1 year for the year of 2010. In the meantime the Scientific Working Group of the SPRFMO is working hard to prepare a management advice for this stock. In the SPRFMO meeting of January 2011 this advice will be discussed and management for 2011 and further will be decided. In the framework of the SPRFMO the PFA fully and actively cooperates with the EU and the scientific community linked to the SPRFMO process. This cooperation expresses itself amongst other things in taking (and financing) observers on board during its fishing operations in the South Pacific and making catch data available to the science.
