January 22, 2024 USHUAIA, ARGENTINA –Sea Shepherd Conservation Society announced its partnership with Sea Shepherd Global to challenge the Krill Fishing Fleet’s destructive exploitation of the Southern Ocean.
Sea Shepherd’s vessel, the Allankay, departed from Ushuaia, the southernmost city in the world, embarking on its return journey to the Antarctic with staff from both organizations on-board. This voyage signals the start of the 2024 campaign partnership “Operation Antarctica Defense.”
“In recent years, we’ve seen a concerning expansion in the krill fishing fleet, exploiting some of the most remote waters in the world,” stated Captain Peter Hammarstedt, Director of Campaigns. “Most people assume that the Antarctic is fully protected from industrial fishing. But over a dozen supertrawlers—each one as large as two Olympic-sized swimming pools—are licensed to kill krill, a foundational species that whales, penguins, seals and the entire ecosystem depends on for survival“.
“Our ultimate goal is to use this effective campaign in Antarctica to build global awareness so real Marine Protected Areas are put in place that can bring this devastation to an end,” remarked Sea Shepherd Conservation Society CEO Pritam Singh.
In 2023, Sea Shepherd’s efforts brought much-needed attention to the Krill Fishing Fleet’s harmful operations. The crew aboard the Allankay captured startling footage revealing the fleet’s invasive trawling through megapods of feeding whales. This crucial evidence played a significant role in the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR)’s decision to not increase the krill quota for 2024, despite the fishing industry’s best efforts to have it doubled.
“That is a win for conservation,” says Captain Hammarstedt “but a quota of zero would be a victory.”
For this year’s campaign, the crew onboard the Allankay will track and shadow the Krill Fishing Fleet, focusing particularly on their impact on marine wildlife in proposed marine protected areas (MPAs).
Sea Shepherd aims to keep the krill fishery on the political agenda and make the case for why the Antarctic Peninsula and the South Orkney Islands need to be closed off to krill fishing as ‘no-take’ marine protected areas, a decision the international community will be discussing and voting on later this year. The mission is also supported by Sea Shepherd Germany, Switzerland and all the countries that are part of the global Sea Shepherd movement.
