Horse mackerel fishery in the Sourth Pacific. (Photo: Universidad Catolica de la Santisima Concepcion)
CHILE Tuesday, December 11, 2012, 04:10 (GMT + 9)
Authorities of the Marine and Atmospheric Research Division (CMAR) of the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) this month visited the facilities of the Fisheries Development Institute (IFOP), located in Valparaiso, Chile.
Both sides agreed on the need to promote the development of international bilateral science and technology collaborative initiatives in the South Pacific.
These initiatives include science and research applied to environmental management, fisheries and conservation, among other issues, reported IFOP.
As part of these initiatives, through CMAR, the representatives of CSIRO initiated contacts and communications with scientists and administrators of Chilean coastal marine resources in order to find areas of common interest enabling the development of cooperation programmes.
As part of this visit, IFOP organized a workshop attended by professionals of the entity, of the Undersecretariat of Fisheries and Aquaculture (Subpesca) and of CMAR-Csiro.
The main objective of this activity is to explore and discuss issues of interest and possible collaborations.
IFOP International Affairs official, M. Angela Barbieri, was responsible for the organization and conduct of the workshop, while from CMAR-CSIRO the workshop was attended by Andy Steven, resilient coastal leader; Beth Fulton, a specialist in marine ecosystem modelling; and Rodrigo Bustamante, team leader.
Some of the topics discussed during the meeting included:
- Overview in Chile and Australia on the national priorities to support science; management and conservation of fisheries resources; and lines of research;
- Reasoning, mandates, needs and tools to develop from the mono-specific analysis to the multi-specific one;
- Examples of fisheries management applications based on ecosystems and the conservation and biodiversity of the resources;
- Overview of the evaluation and adaptation to climate change impacts of the ocean.