Krill Fishery

Antarctic krill is a key species in the Southern Ocean ecosystem as well as the target for the largest fishery in the Southern Ocean, which has been operating continuously since the early 1970s. The krill fishery began by operating all around the continent but gradually contracted to the West Antarctica in the 1990s, where it is currently concentrated on a few fishing grounds in the Southwest Atlantic sector. This fishery has regained some commercial attraction because of recent technological developments in harvesting and processing. These developments permit the production of high-value products, and the total annual catch has increased to nearly 400,000 t over the last decade. Climate change has already affected the krill fishery, with the reduced winter sea ice in the South Atlantic allowing current fishery operations farther south than what was previously possible. The Antarctic krill fishery is managed by the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR). Its management system is unique in taking into account the state of the ecosystem as well as that of the harvested stock. The establishment of a feedback management approach for this fishery has been the major task for the Scientific Committee of CCAMLR to realize this ecosystem-based management objective. This chapter provides a general introduction to krill biology and ecology, followed by a narrative of the forces that prompted the development of a krill fishery and the current issues that surround its management.