TACs 2008 for the Russian Far East getting environmental approval

At the meeting on 31 October 2007 the Far Eastern Research and Fishery Council has made public the volumes of the TACs 2008 approved by the Ecological Expertise body, fishery sources in Vladivostok told www.fishnet-russia.com (https://www.fishnet.ru/).

More specifically, while in the current year 2007 the final TACs taking into account online increases of the TACs of particular fish species have amounted to 3,364,000 metric tons, the TACs 2008 have been approved at 3,076,000 tonnes. The TACs of such species as herring, flounder, saury, sculpins, capelin and crabs (mostly red king crab and snow crab opilio) have been reduced. The TACs of shrimp Pandalus goniurus and squid have been decreased correspondingly by 11,000 tonnes and 42,500 tonnes with the latter figure including 20,000 tonnes of the squid TAC in the Sea of Japan and 12,500 tonnes of flying squid Ommastrephes Bartrami in the South Kuriles.

At the same time, the Alaska pollock TAC has been increased by 130,000 thanks to rises in the Kurile waters and in the Sea of Okhotsk. The cod TACs have been increased nearly in all the zones and subareas of the Basin with the total rise amounting to 17,000 tonnes. The TACs of Atka mackerel in the Sea of Japan have been reduced by 7000 tonnes due to the stock's depletion, though the decrease has been compensated by a 20,000-tonne increase of the TAC in East Kamchatka and in the North Kuriles. The condition of the anchovy fishing stock in the South Kurile Ridge has enabled the scientists to recommend a 30-fold higher TAC 2008 as compared to the current TAC 2007. The TACs of seaweed (laminaria, ahnfeltia) have been increased by more than 37,000 tonnes.

Through the first ten months of the current year the fleets of the Russian Far East covered ca.45.6% of the Basin's TACs. The take-up of the TACs of each particular species was as follows: herring - 41.3%, saury - 52.3%, Atka mackerel - 46.7%, flounder - 47.1%, halibut - 59%, cod - 65.8%, wachna cod - 55.8%, Alaska pollock - 78.9%, grenadier - 41.3%, crabs - 42.3%, shrimps - 21.3%, squid - 11.7%.