MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Japanese increasingly concerned about delayed squid fishery

Japanese squid jigging vessels have been granted permission to operate in Argentine waters under a charter agreement for many years, but owners of these are concerned about the delay in the issue of the 2001 licences and say many in Argentina are against this system.

Argentine media has criticised the charter system saying that licences should not be granted to those vessels which do not employ Argentine crewmembers, considering the growing number of unemployed in Argentina.

Concern for squid stocks has also been mentioned. Greenpeace is preparing for surveillance activities on the border of the 200-mile zone off the coast to stop foreign squid jigging vessels from entering the Argentine EEZ.

Argentine fishing vessels are currently catching 10 to 20 tons per day, mostly for production of squid tubes (18-23cm) inside the EEZ, and five to 10 tons per day, mostly whole squid less than 100g (100-200) outside the EEZ.

Foreign squid fleets denounced

It is currently estimated that a fleet composed of about 300 foreign vessels is fishing for squid 200 miles offshore, or just outside Argentina's territorial waters, reports La Nación.

According to Argentine sources, these vessels have formed a virtual floating city, using powerful spotlights to attract squid. The national director of Argentine fisheries, Horacio Rieznik, said after conducting a flight over the area recently that, "It's very unfortunate because they are preying on our resources?the squid go towards the light, like mosquitoes to a lamp, and then they're caught."

The boats use powerful spotlights to attract the squid towards phosphorescent hooks where they are caught. During the six months of the squid season, these boats can catch up to 4,000 tons of whole squid. This year the fleet, composed mainly of vessels flying the flags of Asian countries, are supported by 18 merchant supply boats, which also load the squid catches and ship them back to their country of origin. Each one of these merchant ships has a storage capacity of 6,000 tons, according to Rieznik.

"The boats fish all night and don't allow any breathing room for the resource; the squid don't realise where Argentine territorial waters end, and attracted by the lights