Off the back of the Seaweb Sustainability Summit (New Orleans, US) this week, Deepwater Group held a public consultation meeting to update MSC Stakeholders on progress with MSC certification of New Zealand orange roughy.
The meeting provided an update on new developments. Amongst those attending were representatives from retailers, eNGO’s and other interested parties.
Recent developments include:
- New stock assessments have estimated the stocks are healthy and well managed
- Innovative technological advancements, including underwater cameras and multi-frequency echo sounders, have enabled better estimates of orange roughy numbers, particularly for estimating numbers in mixed-species schools
- New precautionary harvest strategies have been implemented with reference points set well above Maximum Sustainable Yield
- Recent data collected from the fisheries have provided evidence that the fisheries are not posing a risk to the environment (including to seabirds, to marine mammals and to the seabed)
- Three orange roughy fisheries are currently being assessed against the MSC Fisheries Standard and Certification Requirements. There are opportunities for the public to provide input and they are encouraged to do so.
Another update will be held 2 March, Wellington, New Zealand.
To download the presentation provided by George Clement, Chief Executive, Deepwater Group, click here.
If you wish to be kept informed on future meetings, please contact Sharleen Gargiulo, Senior Policy Advisor (sharleen@deepwatergroup.org).
You can also track the fisheries’ progress through MSC assessment by following the DWG website or MSC website.
Underwater footage of New Zealand orange roughy © CSIRO and Sealord Group Ltd
