During the summer of 2002, Archipelago worked with the International Pacific Halibut Commission to pilot test the option of using CCTV-based electronic monitoring equipment for monitoring seabird bycatch within the Alaska longline halibut fishery.
In 2002, a small-scale demonstration fishery set out to explore individual quota allocation as an alternative management approach in the salmon troll fishery.
Archipelago was contracted by the Area H Gulf Troller’s Association to provide a comprehensive salmon troll monitoring program, collecting information needed to evaluate the potential of this alternative fishery management method.
Seabird mortality resulting from interactions with the third-wire has been documented, but observers deployed to these vessels have other critical duties important to fisheries management and science that preclude a comprehensive assessment of this issue. Monitoring the third-wire on several types of trawl vessels is the critical component to evaluating the threat to short-tailed albatross.
The Area ‘A’ crab fishery employed a fleet of about 50 vessels fishing for Dungeness crab in northern British Columbia. During the 1990s, the crab fishery intensified in terms of catch, the number of vessels involved and amount of trap gear deployed. Escalation of the fishery resulted in a dramatic increase in fishing effort with more than 50,000 traps being deployed.
In 2001, Archipelago updated an earlier compliance monitoring infrastructure at BC’s sablefish seamount fishery with an onboard electronic monitoring alternative. The new equipment allowed for rapid data processing and improved access to specific fishing activity imagery.
British Columbia’s salmon fisheries were the first to participate in the Canadian Department of Fisheries selective fishing initiatives. The Selective Fisheries Program was introduced as an industry-led initiative to reduce bycatch and promote selective fishing.
In 2011, Spanish purse seiner Playa de Bakio became the world’s first tropical tuna vessel to test the latest in electronic monitoring technology. Equipped with both a CCTV-based monitoring system and onboard observers, the test vessel enabled researchers to compare the advantages and challenges of each, and to ultimately determine whether an automated monitoring system could serve as a viable alternative to onboard observers.
The US West Coast mid-water trawl fishery for Pacific whiting has adopted EM to help manage quotas, reduce discards, and control costs. Introduced as an automated alternative to onboard observers more than a decade ago …
To help ensure the long-term sustainability of British Columbia’s groundfish fishery, Fisheries and Oceans Canada worked with Archipelago to introduce an at-sea monitoring program that would accurately assess at-sea fishing activity across the entire fishery.
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