This paper proposes an updated set of candidate management units (MUs) for application of the revised krill fishery management approach in subarea 48.1. The Spatial Overlap Analysis initially identified candidate MUs in a relatively data rich area that coincided with the footprint of the fishery during the period 1980 to 2018 and covered only 54% of Subarea 48.1. The updated set of candidate MUs cover the whole of Subarea 48.1 and incorporate other recent suggestions made by Scientific Committee and its working groups. Cumulative changes since the initial proposal include:
- New “Drake Passage 1” and “Powell Basin 1” MUs within the western and eastern parts of the footprint respectively.
- Inclusion of the south eastern corner of the “Joinville” stratum (which falls outside of the footprint, but could be included in the SOA) in the “Joinville” MU.
- The area outside the footprint has been split into two candidate MUs: ”Drake Passage 2” and “Powell Basin 2”.
- Inclusion of the area between the islands at the tip of the peninsula in “Powell Basin 2”.
- These updated candidate MUs are mapped using the standard projection and coastline proposed in WG-ASAM 2023/01.
The availability of data with which to implement the revised krill fishery management approach varies between candidate MUs. For example there is insufficient data to include ”Drake Passage 2” and “Powell Basin 2” in the Spatial Overlap Analysis. We request that WG-ASAM identifies whether sufficient data exist to provide a robust krill biomass estimate for each updated candidate MU.