Compiled by Andy Nystrom – Archivist and Research Assistant
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/dark-vessel-satellite-tracking-1.5927312
Canada launching $7M project to track international ‘dark vessels’ at sea
CBC News Feb 24, 2021 9:27 PM PT
A new 18-month Fisheries and Oceans Canada project will use satellites to find and track “dark vessels” that have turned off location transmitters to evade authorities. Looking for where the fish are likely to be due to sea surface temperature and chlorophyll aids in finding the fishers. The project is particularly interested in factory fishing vessels that can do a lot of destruction in a short period of time, such as harming subsistence fisheries, lost tax revenue, risks to food security, and negative environmental impacts. Such fishing accounts for 30% of all world fishing, cost the global economy $23 billion, and greatly contributes to declining fish stocks and habitat destruction. Once a possible illegal vessel is detected, local authorities will be notified.
https://www.taiwannews.com.tw/en/news/4123680
Five countries to abandon Pacific forum over leadership vote
Taiwan News
Five Pacific nations (Nauru, the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM), Kiribati, Marshall Islands, and Palau) have announced their intention to exit the Pacific Forum. The decision is the fallout from a vote for the forum’s new Secretary-General, in which former Cook Islands Prime Minister Henry Puna defeated Micronesia’s Gerald Zackious, the Marshall Islands ambassador to the United States nine votes to eight. The five withdrawing countries claimed there has been a gentleman’s agreement in place on sub-regional rotation. Economics hardships resulting from the coronavirus may have also played a role in their decision.