The factors causing impact on the toothfish catch estimation on board of fishing vessels

The toothfish catch estimation on board of fishing vessels at the CCAMLR area is being done often in a difficult weather conditions at sea, which can cause a negative impact on the measurement equipment. Besides, until today the “green weight” of the toothfish catch on fishing vessels was not estimated directly, but by calculation, based on the weight of the production using appropriate conversion factors (coefficients) determined experimentally. These circumstances, together with mistakes in the informational communication on board of fishing vessels, can lead to a significant distortion of fishing catches in operational statistical reports. The document analyzes the significance of all the critical factors and offers recommendations on how to minimize the distortions in catch estimation on board of fishing vessels.