2nd Biennial Fisheries Observer Program Workshop
St.
John's, Newfoundland, Canada
June 26 - 29, 2000
In 1998, the National Marine Fisheries
Service (NMFS) and the Canadian Department of Fisheries
and Oceans (DFO) co-sponsored a workshop in Seattle,
WA, designed to bring together some of the key organizations
responsible for the design, management and delivery
of at-sea fisheries Observer Programs
in the United States and Canada. The 2nd workshop was again
sponsored by DFO and NMFS and included greater representation
from the fishing industry and observers.
The turnout exceeded our expectations, with 127 attendees from the USA,
Canada, New Zealand, Norway, the Solomon Islands, New Caledonia and Micronesia.
There were six expert panels convened, focusing on issues of general industry
issues, observer program funding, observer safety, maintaining an experienced
observer corps, designing programs to meet multiple objectives, implementing
observer deployment strategies, and integrating observer data with other
information sources. There was also a break-out session on developing
an observer "Bill of Rights." Twenty-three current observers
were in attendance, which greatly enhanced the quality of discussions
and recommendations. Based on the success of the workshop, proposals were
made to expand its scope internationally in 2002. It is expected that
the USA and Canada will continue to play a large role in organizing and
sponsoring these workshops in the future. The proceedings of this workshop
can be found at www.seawatch2000.nf.ca.
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