MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Fisheries: Argentina - Falklands - Spain

Closure of consulate could damage fishing industry / Squid fleet abandons Falklands fishery / Vigo 2003 show takes shape

Closure of consulate could damage fishing industry
The closure of an Argentine consulate in Vigo, Spain, could greatly damage the national fisheries sector, claims Association of Community Companies in Mixed Fishing Societies (Acemix). Hispanic-Argentine companies which export to Spain will suffer the most, it says.
If the consulate in Vigo closes, companies exporting to Spain will have no choice but to deal with the Argentine Embassy in Madrid, which won't be as efficient as the current system and which will cost the companies more time and money. Therefore, says Acemix, it asking the Argentine Government to reconsider its decision.
Acemix has argued that many aspects of the fishing industry would be affected by the closure of the consulate which issues visas for crews of fishing vessels operating in Argentine waters, authorises health certificates and certificates of origin for exports to Argentina, seizes Argentine-flagged ships' logbooks on their return to port in Galicia and changes flags on the ships. The consulate also handles navigation clearing papers and certifies the seaworthiness of vessels leaving port and provides documents certifying deep-sea safety.

Squid fleet abandons Falklands fishery
It is reported that almost all Japanese illex squid jiggers have given up the fishery off the Falkland Islands and in the open sea in the south-west Atlantic due to continued poor catches. Most of the fleet has switched to waters off Peru and Costa Rica to catch giant squid although four bare-chartered fishing vessels are in Argentine waters and one Japanese-flagged vessel is still working in the open sea.
The cumulative catch for the south-west Atlantic is put at just 22,537 tonnes ? roughly half the total from this time last year, which had also been a smaller catch due to delays in issuing licences by the Argentine authorities. By 5 May a total of 5,610 tonnes had been caught by 19 vessels in the Falkland Islands area, 11,275 tonnes was taken by 29 vessels in the open sea and 5,651 tonnes was caught by the four bare-chartered vessels in Argentine waters.
Although this year's licences for Argentine waters are valid until the end of August, the catch rate for the south-west Atlantic is expected to drop from now on and may reach no more than 30,000 tonnes. That would be a 60 per cent drop on last year's 70,673 tonnes and a 75 per cent drop from the 115,000 tonnes caught the previous year.
Meanwhile, the eight Japanese jiggers in Peru's exclusive economic zone are making good catches of giant squid with around 8,000 tonnes reported to have been taken there and in the open sea off Peru. However, the assortment of sizes is not as good as is hoped for fetching the best prices at auction in Hachinohe port.

Vigo 2003 show takes shape
The next World Fishing Exhibition will be held in Vigo from 17-21 September next year and its organisers say that already more than half the available space is reserved.
The president of the World Fishing Exhibition executive committee, Alfonso Paz-Andrade, said that the success of the Vigo show was shown by the extraordinary response to next year's edition. He said 103 companies from 25 countries have already reserved 60 per cent of the available space and that seven countries have officially confirmed their participation: Iceland, Norway, Denmark, United Kingdom, Holland, Faroe Islands and Sweden.
Paz-Andrade said Vigo 2003 will be held at a crucial time for fisheries companies, given that the new Common Fisheries Policy comes into force next year and its effects will be discussed at the show in September. EU enlargement will also be a hot topic and that is why the show organisers are paying special attention to the participation of companies and visitors from Eastern Europe, especially from the important fishing countries which are candidates for joining, such as Poland, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.
He said other target countries include Russia, Japan, Thailand, Taiwan and China as well as smaller nations which are developing fisheries, including Fiji, Maldives, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands and Vanuatu.
During the signing of an agreement for the show, the Mayor of Vigo, Lois Castrillo, underlined the importance which this international exhibition has for Vigo. He said that since the first time that it was held in the city, in 1973, and the four shows which have followed since, Vigo had become the business centre for the world fishing industry.
The World Conference on Deep Water Fisheries will be held in Vigo at the same time as the show to stimulate constructive discussion between scientists, governments, industry representatives and supranational organisations to guarantee the sustainability of deep-sea fisheries.

Source: FIS