Tuna Treaty: US Wants 9000 Days, Pacific 7500 For USD 65 Mioff

Source: Islands Business

The number of days and how much the United States is willing to pay will be the deal breaker in the current negotiations for a successor agreement to the US tuna treaty.

The next round of talks between the Pacific and the US will be held in New Zealand in June.

The US is willing to pay USD 65 million for 9,000 days but for this price the Pacific parties are only willing to offer 7,500 days—an issue that will dominate the seventh round of talks in Auckland.

“We also note that the price per day for the 7,500 days under your current proposal is marginally higher than the price per day for the 7,000 days in your previous proposal. The additional 500 PNA days appear to be valued at USD 10,000 per day,” the US said in the sixth round of negotiations early last month in Hawaii.

In response to the US position, the Pacific said this calculation is misleading. “Our proposal represents around USD 8,666 per day for all 7,500 days.

“We remain uncertain as to the relative contributions from the industry and government but we calculate that our proposal represents a US industry payment of approximately USD 5,800 per day.”

The US proposal in Nadi in November last year was at USD 58 million for 9,000 days to be fished throughout the Treaty Area (as defined in our earlier proposals to mean waters under the jurisdiction of the Pacific Island Parties).

They estimated the proposal to be valued at USD 6,400 per day.

At the Nadi talks (the fifth round), the Pacific Islands parties then asked for USD 60 million making only 7,000 days available as opposed to the 6,000 days they had earlier insisted.

In the fourth round of negotiations also held in Nadi last year, the US offered USD 45 million for the 9,000 days to fish in any zone of the Pacific.

The United States team, attending the sixth round of negotiations, stated that under the Pacific Islands Parties’ final proposal, the additional 500 PNA fishing days would be accompanied by an increase in the financial package of USD 5 million (from USD 60 million to USD 65 million).

The deal

“The US noted that the price per day for the 7,500 days under the Pacific Islands Parties proposal was a bit higher than the price per day for the 7,000 days in their previous proposal and the additional 500 days appeared to be valued at USD 10,000 per day,” the US stated.

“Unfortunately, the number of days and the price per fishing day in your proposal remain well outside a range that would allow the US fleet to operate on an economically viable basis. We further note that your offer is contingent upon a future decision of the WCPFC, which adds a significant element of uncertainty.”

“This uncertainty may be clarified once the WCPFC meeting takes up the matter of the overall level of purse seine fishing effort in the region at its meeting later this month (March).”

The US said the proposal and remaining uncertainties regarding non-fishing days and other elements made it hard for them to make the right response.

The Americans hope these issues could be addressed before the next session so they could come to some form of an agreement.

They reiterated their commitment to the treaty and the long lasting relationship with the Pacific Islands states.

The Vessel Day Scheme is a Parties to the Nauru Agreement initiative hence known as PNA days.

Pacific position

The Pacific, however, is only willing to offer 7,500 days for the USD 65 million on offer, which is 500 days more than its last offer.

The Pacific Islands Parties also warned at the Hawaii meeting that fishing days would become scarce as they start to allocate days for 2013.

The changes in fishery prices and market for access have resulted in growing opportunities and expectations for the Pacific parties.

“As time goes by, we also get further and further into the process of allocating days for 2013, which will also have a bearing on our ability to offer fishing opportunities to the US,” the Pacific Islands stated in their final statement.

“Similarly, ongoing uncertainty about the number of days to be made available to the US complicates our decision-making in respect to other fleets.”

While the Pacific recognizes the viability issues challenging the US tuna industry in the negotiations, the Pacific also has its own challenges in securing an equitable return from the sustainable management of their scarce resources.

Kiribati wants catch monitored

Kiribati’s President Anote Tong told Islands Business that while talks on the new US tuna treaty are progressing, maybe the time is right to monitor exact catches instead of giving a limit on days.

Tong made the comments when asked about the current progress on the US treaty talks, which went through a sixth round last month in Hawaii without any agreement reached.

“I think we know that we must harvest the resource but we must harvest it sustainably,” he told the magazine.  Any attempt by any nation to put more stress on the resource I think should be resisted as much as possible.  I think we have already taken too much out of this planet and we need to give something back, so we hope we can work with them (US) for an amicable solution.  Maybe the vessel day scheme needs to be reviewed. I am just wondering as a means of management and from the information coming forward, that we do not know how much is being taken out of our waters.”

Tong said it would be better talking about a total allowable catch rather than the number of days because the days are becoming different.

One day with a purse seiner is a lot of fish, he said.

Kiribati is amongst one of the largest tuna stock owners and a major player in the Parties to Nauru Agreement, which comprises Federated States of Micronesia, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Nauru, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands and Tuvalu.