American Samoa Government identifying a funding source for the construction of a future longline dock in Pago Pago — and the outcome of a federal economic study for the exemption of a US purse seiner fleet based in the territory from fishing on the high seas — are two of four recommendations the American Samoa Fishery Ecosystem Plan Advisory Panel presented this week at the 165th Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council meeting in Honolulu.

The American Samoa panel is one of the advisory panels to the Council and American Samoa panel chairwoman Christinna Lutu-Sanchez presented the four recommendations on American Samoa’s Pelagic Fishery issues. The Council’s three-day meeting closed yesterday and was live-streamed online.

Lutu-Sanchez says the panel recommends the Council request that the American Samoa government make known the planned funding source that will be utilized for the construction of a longline vessel dock, and also provide a time frame for the completed the project.

Lutu-Sanchez informed the meeting “we still have a lot of fishery issues with the dock”, adding that in the last couple of weeks, “we had a lot of tension” between Port Administration, Marine and Wildlife Resources as well as the Shipyard, “just to figure out where to put the boats.”

Earlier in the meeting, and prior to Lutu-Sanchez’s presentation, Council executive director Seuta’atia Kitty Simonds presented a $94,000 check to Port Administration director, Taimalelagi Dr. Claire Tuia Poumele, for the design of the wharf at the Malaloa marine area where longline vessels will be able to dock.

Taimalelagi, who is also a member of the Council, first spoke in Samoan thanking Seuta’atia (who’s chiefly title is from Aunu’u) and the Council for the generous financial assistance. And she added in English that “we are working quickly to get the design to make this a reality.”

Lutu-Sanchez, in her presentation, noted that the Council has allocated funds to design the dock space “but the design is not going to be very useful if there is no identified funding to actually construct it.”

ECONOMIC STUDY

The second recommendation is for the Council to request the results of the US National Marine Fishery Service (NMFS) economic study on the US purse seine fleet commissioned last year “specifically in correlation with the request to exempt American Samoa based purse seiners from certain high seas fishing restrictions,” Lutu-Sanchez said.

She added that this recommendation came from the locally based US purse seine fleet and “we’re trying to find out where we are with this study. It was supposed to be urgent.”

Public comments on the economic study closed Nov. 23 last year, and as of yesterday, there is no information on federal portal — www.regulations.gov — of a decision being reached yet. NMFS had said that it plans to examine, among other things, potential impacts of implementing domestic decisions by the Western and Central Pacific Fishery Commission for purse seine fisheries on the economics of the US territories, which are ‘Participating Members’ of the Commission. (See Samoa News edition Oct. 26, 2015 for details).

OVERLAP AREA

The third recommendation is for the Council to request NMFS to streamline regulations for the US fleet to adhere to Inter-America Tropical Tuna Commission (IATTC rules in the “overlap area” — which is in the eastern Pacific ocean between the convention areas of the IATTC and the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission (WCPFC).

Lutu-Sanchez said this is another request from the local US purse seine fleet and it’s a basic request, which is — not to duplicate regulation or over-regulate a fishing fleet, adding more burden to the US fleet.

(The IATTC and WCPFC areas overlap in the Pacific Ocean waters within a rectangular area bounded by 50° S. latitude, 150° W. longitude, 130° W. longitude, and 4° S. latitude, according to NMFS, which provides the proposed rule making and information on federal portal - www.regulations.gov).

Tri Marine International, which has a US purse seine fleet based in Pago Pago, had written to NMFS opposing new fishing regulations being proposed for the “overlap area”.

Public comment period for this proposed rule making closed Jan. 28, and it is not clear yet as to when NMFS will issue a decision. (See Samoa News edition Feb. 10 for details.)

TRADE AGREEMENTS

The fourth recommendation asks the Council to request information from the US Trade Representative “on discussions and plans held to prevent negative impact of recently signed free trade agreements to the domestic canning tuna industry and subsequently to the economy of American Samoa.”

Lutu-Sanchez told the meeting, “While we understand that this is outside of the jurisdiction of the Council, we are very concerned as an advisory panel of the impact and are curious as to whether there were any considerations on the impact to our tuna canning industry, especially [as] that is the base of our economy in American Samoa.”

Gov. Lolo Matalasi Moliga has publicly voiced his concerns, which have also been shared with federal officials, over US trade agreements with other countries, impacting the local tuna industry. Last month, the governor voiced to federal officials his concerns over the adverse impact on the canneries due to the proposed reduction of import tariffs on canned products imported from the 12 countries that are parties to the Trans Pacific Trade Agreement.