Decision ID: 003561

In June 2009 the 1992 Fund Executive Committee noted that in the aftermath of the incident, the Korean Government had issued a number of fishing and harvesting restrictions in the areas affected by the oil spill. It was noted that technical criteria had been only part of the considerations of the Government when deciding to lift the restrictions and that economic and social concerns had also been taken into account. It was also noted that on the basis of the information supplied by the Korean Government and the best interpretation of the data provided, the 1992 Fund’s experts had considered it clear that all the fisheries should reasonably have been reopened before the actual date of the lifting of the respective fisheries restrictions. It was further noted that, based on the information available, it appeared that the fishing restrictions for all types of fishing had been extended beyond the period which could have been considered reasonable based on the results of the testing carried out by the Korean authorities. The Committee noted the Director’s view that any losses actually suffered by the fishermen after a point in time where the Korean Government could reasonably have had the opportunity to lift the restrictions on the basis of conclusive scientific information indicating that the level of contamination was back within safe levels, should not be considered due to the contamination caused by the incident, and that the Director therefore had intended to reject claims for losses suffered by fishermen after those dates. The Executive Committee endorsed the Director’s view that the assessment of claims in the fisheries sector should not necessarily be based on the dates when the fishing and harvesting restrictions issued by the Korean Government had been actually lifted by the Korean authorities, but should be based on conclusive scientific information available to the 1992 Fund. The Committe also instructed the Director to continue to have bilateral consultations with the Republic of Korea with a view to resolving the remaining differences of opinion as soon as possible.