Pacific Island Nations: Current Issues and U.S. Interests

Introduction

Thank you, Mr. Chairman, for inviting me to testify today on the environmental issues facing the Pacific region and the approach the Bush Administration is taking to address those issues. I would first like to address the fisheries component of our relationship with the Pacific Island Nations. The highly productive and valuable fish stocks of the central and western Pacific Ocean are viewed by many of the Pacific Island States as among their most valuable natural resources, providing income from licensing fees, food and jobs for their citizens, and opportunities for future economic growth and development. In fact, tuna is sometimes referred to as the "Petroleum of the Pacific" because of its economic importance to the countries of the region.

While these fishery resources are renewable, they are also subject to depletion if not properly managed and conserved to ensure their sustainability. For this, international cooperation is essential and the Pacific Islands and the United States have worked cooperatively for many years both to share the economic benefits generated by these resources and to ensure their health for future generations. This involves significant cooperation at both the political and economic levels, but also includes such additional components as cooperation on scientific research; fisheries monitoring, control and surveillance; and environmental policy and related fields.

The principal component of this relationship is the Multilateral Treaty on Fisheries between the Government of Certain Pacific Island States and the Government of the United States. Under this Treaty, U.S. tuna fishing vessels gain access to fish in vast areas of the western and central Pacific Ocean (subject to certain conditions), including the exclusive economic zones of several Pacific Island States. In addition to the United States, the Parties to the Treaty include the 16 States of the South Pacific Forum Fisheries Agency ("FFA"): Australia, Cook Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Republic of Kiribati, Republic of the Marshall Islands, Republic of Nauru, New Zealand, Niue, Republic of Palau, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Kingdom of Tonga, Tuvalu, Republic of Vanuatu and Samoa.

The Treaty entered into force on June 15, 1988. While the Treaty itself does not expire, the operational provisions were originally designed for a five-year period. In 1993, the operation of the Treaty was extended for 10 years, until June 14, 2003. Just recently, the United States and the Pacific Island Parties concluded negotiations to extend the operation of the Treaty for an additional 10-year period, through June 14, 2013.

The Treaty provides considerable economic benefit to the United States and to the Pacific Island Parties. The tuna harvested by U.S. vessels operating in the Treaty Area has a landed value (the price paid to the fishermen) of between $100 to $150 million annually. Nearly all of this fish is landed in American Samoa and processed in two U.S. canneries located there. These canneries are the largest employers in American Samoa providing more than 80% of the private sector employment in that territory. Moreover, the value of the tuna increases as it moves through the processing and distribution chain so that its total contribution to the U.S. economy may be two to three times the landed value, or between $250 to $400 million annually.

In exchange for access to this valuable resource, the U.S. industry currently pays $4 million per year for license fees to the Pacific Island Parties to the Treaty. In addition, the United States currently provides $14 million annually to the Pacific Island States under an associated Economic Assistance Agreement. Under the revised agreement, the U.S. industry payment will be $3 million annually, reflecting a decrease in the number of U.S. vessels operating under the Treaty. The funds paid by the U.S. Government will increase from $14 million to $18 million annually, reflecting an inflation adjustment and increased assistance needs over the 10-year period since the last extension.

The relationship between the United States and the Pacific Island States established and developed over the past fourteen years under the Tuna Treaty has yielded benefits in other related areas. One important example is the negotiations to establish a Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission (WCPFC). These negotiations, conducted over a period of several years, resulted in the adoption of a Convention text in September 2000. The United States participated in the negotiations along with twenty-four other states and Taiwan, representing virtually all the coastal states and major distant-water fishing states and fishing entities operating in the region.

The area covered by this Convention encompasses the last major area of the world's oceans not covered by a regional management regime for tunas and other highly migratory species. This region produces more than half the world's annual tuna catch, with an annual landed value of between $1.5 to $2 billion.

The distinction between the WCPF Convention and the Tuna Treaty is that the Tuna Treaty is primarily an access arrangement for U.S. vessels, while the new Convention will establish the conservation and management measures to be adhered to by all countries and fishing entities with vessels operating in the region. Our longstanding relationship with the Pacific Island States allowed us to work closely with them (and the other negotiating parties) during the negotiating process and to adopt a text that supports our mutual interests in the effective long-term conservation and management of the region’s valuable fishery resources.

The United States is participating actively in the WCPFC Preparatory Process, established to prepare administratively for the entry into force of the Convention and the creation of the new Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission. The Third Session of the Preparatory Conference will be held this November in Manila, Philippines.

One key issue that the United States hopes to see addressed under this new Convention is the issue of excess fishing capacity -- the prospect of too many vessels catching too much fish. While the stocks of tuna in the western and central Pacific are not currently considered to be over-fished, excess capacity complicates adoption and implementation of effective conservation and management measures and has significant implications for the economic viability of these fisheries in the longer term.

Together, the South Pacific Tuna Treaty and the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Convention form a strong foundation for U.S. involvement and cooperation with the states of the western and central Pacific. Of course, this work is based in large part on the operation of the U.S. tuna fleet in the region and their efforts over many years to strengthen ties with their commercial counterparts and governments throughout the area. The industry maintains commercial ties throughout the region and, in fact, has worked actively to promote the development of domestic industries in those locations where such activities are economically viable. As a result, the fisheries sector represents perhaps the largest single source of political, economic and commercial cooperation between the United States and the Island States of the Western and Central Pacific Ocean.

The South Pacific Regional Environment Program (SPREP) has existed for nearly fifteen years to protect and improve the South Pacific environment and to ensure sustainable development in that area. The U.S. territories of American Samoa, Guam and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, are located within the SPREP area. The State of Hawaii is also closely linked to the Pacific basin by geography, history, economics and politics. SPREP provides for increased cooperation among the United States, Australia, New Zealand, France and twenty-two island States and territories of the South Pacific area in addressing issues affecting environment and development in the region.

SPREP is the best opportunity for us to both influence regional Pacific environmental policies and encourage coordinated approaches on environmental and sustainable development issues. With greater commercial development, the region’s unique wildlife and plants are at risk. With a decreased USAID presence in the region, U.S. participation in SPREP sends a strong signal that the Pacific region remains a priority for us.

SPREP serves its members in managing regional projects, on topics such as coral reefs, invasive species, marine pollution and emergency response strategies, environmental impact assessment, climate change and the impacts of El Nino, regional coordination of meteorological services, capacity building, and information exchange, among others. In addition, SPREP coordinates the development of regional strategies for implementation of global programs and agreements, including the Framework Convention on Climate Change, the Global Program of Action for the Protection of the Marine Environment, and the International Coral Reef Initiative. In this, SPREP has proven to be an extremely valuable forum in forming partnerships both regionally and individually with the Pacific islands to protect the environment of the Pacific region.

SPREP has also played a useful role in assisting Pacific Island countries in implementing regional and global environmental agreements. At present, SPREP is coordinating the second phase of implementation of the Montreal Protocol (with all countries maintaining their current phase-outs of ozone-depleting substances and remaining in compliance), which has been ratified by all Pacific Island Countries constitutionally able to do so. SPREP is also proposing a regional approach to the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (MARPOL 73/78) which would feature elements similar to those of the Wider Caribbean Initiative on Ship-Generated Wastes (WCISW), which takes into account the unique challenges faced by geographically-isolated small island states.

The management and conservation of coral reef ecosystems are also areas where we must continue to provide assistance. A recent study of reefs in South East Asia estimates the total annual net benefit of sustainable coral reef fisheries across Southeast Asia at $2.4 billion. This significant amount does not include tourism or other benefits from reefs. A square kilometer of reef in Indonesia or the Philippines in a tourist destination can generate up to $270,000 annually. Yet we continue to see a decline in reefs throughout the region. To halt this trend, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), the Department of State, and other agencies have been leading supporters of international programs to protect coral reef ecosystems, and have sponsored numerous programs directed at conservation of Pacific reefs.

In 2001, for example, the Department of State, in conjunction with USAID, sponsored the International Marine Life Alliance in its efforts to reform reef species trade in Indonesia, Vietnam, Kiribati, Vanuatu, and Hong Kong. The Department of State, NOAA and USAID successfully led an effort within the Asia Pacific Economic Forum to adopt a resolution addressing destructive fishing and the use of cyanide in the live reef fish trade. We worked through the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), the University of Rhode Island and Tetra Tech, Inc. to improve marine conservation and coastal management programs in Indonesia and the Philippines. Throughout the region, we have provided Reef Check with the resources to provide local communities with the management tools necessary to save their reefs. Much of our global support to the UNEP Regional Seas Programs for coral work and to the World Conservation Union (IUCN) for coral and marine protected area activity is spent in the Pacific. We hope to find the resources to continue these types of programs in the future.

The United States is also working closely with Pacific Island Nations, as we are with many other developing nations, on the climate change issue. For example, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) assists the overall Global Climate Observation System (GCOS) effort in the Pacific Islands with training and infrastructure support, capacity-building among meteorologists in the region to improve predictions and related climate change risk management and adaptation strategic planning. In addition, the U.S. will be collaborating under the Climate Action Partnership, a new arrangement with Australia, to cooperate with developing countries in the Pacific Island region to build their capacity to address climate change. Initial projects under this activity will establish and maintain robust climate monitoring and data management systems in the Pacific, and will assist Pacific Island countries in accessing and applying climate and oceanographic information more effectively in climate-related risk management and adaptation to climate change. Training and a joint workshop will be held in Fiji later this year to increase understanding of regional needs. USAID supports coastal zone management-related programs in the Pacific Islands through non-governmental organizations such as The Nature Conservancy, Wildlife Conservation Society, and the International Marine Life Alliance. USAID and the Peace Corps have initiated an innovative, "Partnership in Integrated Coastal Management in the Pacific," to use local and U.S. expertise to build the capacity of Pacific Island states to manage coastal resources. Previous U.S. efforts in the region include the U.S. climate change Country Studies Program’s support for the Federated States of Micronesia’s effort to identify means of adaptation to climate change in the coastal zone, agriculture, and forest sectors.

The Bush Administration is committed to working bilaterally and multilaterally to help the Pacific Island developing countries address their environmental and developmental challenges. The United States has long-standing interests and special relationships in the region, and we are committed to remaining engaged to see these challenges through.