Sea Shepherd has called on the Australian government to intervene in a tense standoff with suspected illegal fishers in a remote part of the Southern Ocean.

The ocean conservation group’s ship Bob Barker has intercepted the Nigerian-flagged fishing vessel Thunder just outside Australian-claimed Antarctic waters, far to the south-west of the mainland. Sea Shepherd claims the Thunder was illegally fishing at the time of the interception and had been pulling toothfish out of Australian waters.

The Antarctic toothfish is a highly prized species, known as “white gold” and sought after by high-end restaurants. While there are licensed fishing operators in Antarctic waters, it’s thought that there are six illegal fishing vessels currently targeting toothfish.

The Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources lists the Thunder as an unlicensed fishing operator, while Interpol has put out a “purple notice” on the Thunder.

The area of the Southern Ocean where the Thunder was found is called the “shadowlands” by Sea Shepherd due to its remoteness, around 15 days of sailing from Fremantle in Western Australia.

Location of Sea Shepherd and Thunder ships in the Southern Ocean.

Peter Hammarstedt, captain of the Bob Barker, told Guardian Australia that the conservation boat took the Thunder by surprise.

“We found the vessel engaged in illegal fishing, there were buoys and nets in the water,” he said. “I told the captain that they were fishing illegally and to go to Fremantle and hand themselves over.

“He tried to flee at around 12 knots but I was quickly able to make up the distance. He then told me he was just passing through the area, which begs the question why he ran away.”

The Bob Barker and the Thunder are now involved in a standoff, with the conservation ship calling on the Australian government to send a vessel to help arrest the fishing boat.



“The Thunder is in a bit of a tricky position because they said they weren’t fishing but they can’t retrieve their fishing gear,” Hammarstedt said. “They hope we’ll lose interest so they can get it but we can stay here for the entire fishing season, we’ll be sticking to them like glue.

“I’ve told them that if they intend to resume illegal fishing, I will physically shut them down. I have 500 tonnes of steel to negotiate with here. It will be very difficult for them to fish if we physically block them.

“At the moment it’s a waiting game. We are costing them millions of dollars and we will see what happens when they realise we’re not going anywhere.”

The Australian government has two primary vessels – the Ocean Protector and the ADV Ocean Shield – that patrol the high seas.

The Sea Shepherd fleet is targeting illegal fishing boats this summer after its usual foe, the Japanese whaling operation, was suspended for the year.

Greens senator Peter Whish-Wilson said it was concerning that the Thunder, which was previously impounded in Malaysia for illegal fishing, was back in the Southern Ocean.

“Just like with the monitoring of whaling activity, again the Sea Shepherd has done the government’s job,” he said. “The government needs to immediately conduct an independent investigation into how the Thunder was allowed to go free to plunder the Southern Ocean again.”

The Department of Agriculture, which deals with illegal fishing, was contacted for comment.