CCAMLR Conservation Measures: How the Chairman’s Statement Works

The ‘Final Act of the Conference on the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources’ included a statement made on 19 May 1980 by its Chairman. The ‘Chairman’s Statement’ addressed the CAMLR Convention’s application in waters adjacent to the Kerguelen and Crozet Islands over which France exercises jurisdiction by virtue of its sovereignty over the islands. The Statement included explicit reference to waters adjacent to other islands within the CCAMLR Area, where the existence of State sovereignty is recognised by all the Convention Contracting Parties. In 2007 the CCAMLR Performance Review noted the increasing frequency with which some Commission Members were invoking the Chairman’s Statement. In particular, the Review Panel expressed the view that a point has been reached where any Conservation Measure adopted by CCAMLR invariably attracts a formal reservation on the perception that a conservation measure affects the maritime jurisdictions of certain Members, particularly those exercising national sovereignty over sub-Antarctic islands in the CCAMLR Indian Ocean sector. This paper examines the background to, and practices associated with, applying CCAMLR Conservation Measure reservations under the Chairman’s Statement.