High seas fisheries management refers to the governance and regulation of fishing activities in areas beyond national jurisdiction, often referred to as the 'high seas'. The 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and the 1995 United Nations Fish Stock Agreement (UNFSA) provide the international legal framework for the regulation of fishing activities in areas beyond national jurisdiction. The United Nations Fish Stock Agreement delegates responsibility for conservation and management of fish stocks to regional fisheries management organizations (RFMOs) each governing a geographical area of the high seas.
Traditionally, most regional fisheries management organizations have focused their conservation and management efforts on sustainably managing harvested fish species to produce the maximum sustainable yield. As pressure on marine ecosystems is rising, and fishing is widely recognized as the main threat to biodiversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction, expectations of the need for RFMOs to integrate a precautionary and ecosystem-based management approach have increased. Some scholars recognize that RFMOs have made vast improvements in adopting conservation measures reflecting the concern for the marine environment and biodiversity. Others find that the practices of RFMOs leave significant governance gaps for biodiversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction.
The negotiations for a new agreement under UNCLOS on the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity of areas beyond national jurisdiction (commonly referred to as the 'BBNJ Treaty' or 'Treaty of the High Seas') have led to a debate among scholars and stakeholders about the performance of RFMOs and future options for the governance of high seas fisheries. Some scholars suggest increasing the capacity of RFMOs in light of recent improvements in biodiversity protection. Others point to the need of vesting a new global body with responsibilities traditionally delegated to RFMOs to enhance conservation of biodiversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction.
Background for high seas fisheries management
Areas beyond the 200 nautical miles limit of Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZs) of coastal states comprise 61% of the world's oceans. Until the 1950s, areas beyond national jurisdiction were inaccessible for fishing activities, but advancements in the development of fishing technology (e.g., sonars, GPS, freezers) have enabled fishers to exploit the high seas. By 2005, the spatial coverage of global fishing efforts had expanded to include most of the world's oceans. In 2014, data suggested that around 6% of the global fish catch originated from the high seas, and as the world population continues to grow, the demand for fish is on the rise. In 2020, 34,2% of all fished species were being overfished.
The risks of depletion and overexploitation of fish stocks have been concerns for decades. In 2006, unsustainable fishing, unregulated fishing and destructive fishing practices were acknowledged by states in the working group preceding the negotiations of the BBNJ Treaty as the greatest threat to biodiversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction. Besides from the negative ecological impacts on biodiversity and ecosystems, overfishing and depletion of marine resources have negative socioeconomic consequences in terms of food security and jobs for billions of people. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) estimates that overfishing is particularly critical for fisheries resources fished in the high seas.
The fundamental challenge for the sustainable use of resources of the high seas stems from areas beyond national jurisdiction being a 'global commons'. Historically, the high seas have been subjected to the principle of 'freedom of the seas' securing non-appropriation of the high seas and freedom of use for all states. The principle of freedom of the high seas was formalized into international law with the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). Freedom of the high seas implies that no state has exclusive rights over the common property resources of the high seas, and no state can prevent other states from exploiting these resources. As a result, the high seas essentially suffer from the tragedy of the commons. Concerns about the threat to marine biodiversity posed by fishing activities have led to the gradual development of a global governance regime for high seas fisheries subjecting the freedom of the high seas to the conditions of international law.