U.S. Coast Guard photos by Petty Officer 2nd Class Melissa E. McKenzie
HONOLULU — The USCGC Kukui (WLB 203) crew returned home to Honolulu April 1 after a 36-day patrol of the Western and Central Pacific Ocean to deter illegal fishing of highly migratory fish stocks such as tuna and build relationships with Pacific Island Nations.“This was an extremely successful deployment,” said Lt. j.g. Kristen Holloway, operations officer aboard Kukui. “We patrolled more than 8,462 miles and conducted 13 at-sea boardings resulting in the issuance of eight safety violations and one marine pollution violation.” The Western and Central Pacific Ocean is home to the “tuna belt” and supplies about 60 percent of the global tuna supply, which is worth an estimated $7 billion a year. With more than 5,600 fishing vessels registered with the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission, there are serious concerns about the sustainability of straddling fish stocks. Illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing presents a significant threat to the multi-national fishing fleets that operate in the region. During each fisheries patrol, the U.S. Coast Guard is protecting the U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone from foreign fishing vessel encroachment, enforcing domestic living marine resources laws, and ensuring compliance with international agreements. One of these international arrangements is the Western and Central Fisheries Commission. The WCPFC is a convention comprised of 40 member nations, territories, and cooperating non-members that regulates fishing for highly migratory species on the high seas of the Western and Central Pacific Ocean. Within these partnerships, the Coast Guard's 14th District works closely to ensure all domestic and foreign fishing fleets are complying with this international agreement. The Kukui is one of the vessels that is authorized to carry out boardings and inspections of foreign fishing vessels on the high seas under the WCPFC convention area.The Coast Guard executes bilateral agreements with nine Pacific Island countries. These agreements, commonly known as shiprider agreements, allow enforcement authorities from host nations to embark a Coast Guard or U.S. Navy platform to enforce the host nations’ fisheries laws inside their EEZ. This allows for capacity building, training, joint operations and the safeguarding of highly migratory fish stocks in the Pacific. Kukui’s crew embarked a Samoan shiprider for a portion of this deployment. The U.S. Marine Corps also provided an interpreter who spoke Cantonese to facilitate more effective Communication with the fishing vessel crews.“One of the biggest reasons we conduct this type of mission is to support the long term conservation and sustainable use of highly migratory fish stocks through enforcement of international agreements,” said Lt. Cmdr. Brendan Harris, commanding officer of the Kukui. “Fisheries is a huge economic driver for many Pacific Island countries. By enforcing the regulations that preserve and protect our shared marine resources, we foster economic prosperity today and ensure thriving oceans for future generations.” Fish stocks are a renewable resource if managed correctly and not overfished. More importantly, fish stocks are a global food source and provide economic stability for many countries. In the U.S. alone, the fishing industry employs 1.3 million people and contributes $199 billion per year to the U.S. economy, according to NOAA’s 2012 Economic Report. Many Pacific Island Nations rely on the fishing industry for revenue and sustenance. Depleted fish stocks could contribute to the destabilization of the region and leave small nations vulnerable to dangerous transnational organized crime networks. The Kukui’s crew also sought out volunteer opportunities while deployed. They conducted small boat navigation and seamanship training with local marine patrol officers in Pago Pago, American Samoa, and cleaned up a local hospital in Vava’u, Tonga.