Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources

CCAMLR is an intergovernmental marine conservation and management organisation. It was established by international convention in 1982, with the objective of conserving Antarctic marine life. It consists of 26 member nations plus the European Union. A further 10 countries have acceded to the Convention. Utilising the best available science, the Commission agrees a set of conservation measures by consensus among Members. These include the determination of catch limits by species, geographical area and the type of gear used. CCAMLR also develops and implements strategies to combat illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing in the Convention Area.

The CCAMLR Secretariat provides technical, administrative, scientific and logistical support to the Commission and Scientific Committee. It facilitates communication and collaboration among stakeholders through effective dissemination of information, education, outreach and capacity building. Each October, representatives of the 27 Members gather in Hobart for the annual meetings of CCAMLR. Discussions are interpreted, in real time, in each of the four official languages of the Commission: English, French, Russian and Spanish.