MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Fisheries News

Warning from Chubut fishing companies; Meeting to explore Faroese fisheries management; Airfreight costs cut to promote exports; A taste of the same medicine in Taiwan; Galicia's productivity recovers; UK fish filleting bus hits the road;

Warning from Chubut fishing companies
Patagonian Chubut province fishing companies are warning against the scrapping of the San Jorge Gulf fishing agreement. Such action may discourage investors and make fisheries management more difficult, they argue. The San Jorge Gulf Agreement was signed in 1988 by Chubut and Santa Cruz provinces to regulate fishing in the area where both provinces share jurisdictional rights. According to industry sources the agreement is the only legal instrument that gives investors and fishing companies in the area an element of security. But the local industry fears that a new bill, presented to Chubut's Legislature on April 10 may discourage investment. "This is what has happened in the past, whenever the legal framework in force has been altered", said industry sources. The bill in question proposes terminating Law 3,046, which ratifies the agreement between Chubut and Santa Cruz over San Jorge Gulf, and also proposes that fishing permits that were not in force by 31 December 2002 should not be granted or renewed. The bill also demands that Chubut Executive should elaborate and enforce a new agreement with Santa Cruz within 180 days. Argentine-Patagonian Chamber of Fishing Industries (Capip) vice-president Buenaventura Lafuente agrees that an updated agreement is needed to reflect changing circumstances. But he says any changes "should be the result of consensus between both provinces and a framework for regulations that do not oppose each other and that ensure legal security," which is something the sector has been looking forward to for a long time. Mr. Lafuente argues that the unilateral termination of the agreement, without the participation of Santa Cruz province, is not the best course of action. "This move will have the opposite effect to what is being sought - fewer jobs, lack of co-operation between the provinces and hence lack of control over resources," he told El Chubut. "Its important to realise that all the companies that have invested in Chubut and are based in the province will only be able to fish in the section of the Gulf that belongs to Chubut, and that is not viable," he added. Mr. Lafuente pointed out that Capip members don't want a conflict but and are willing to collaborate with the authorities in the drafting of legislation that fulfils the necessary objectives and becomes a tool and a framework to administer provincial regulations. (FIS/MP).-

Meeting to explore Faroese fisheries management
Shetland Fishermen's Association representatives are to meet Faroese fishing industry counterparts, at an exhibition in Faroe next week, to discuss alternative fishery management structures. The meeting is to take place during the North Atlantic Fish Fair in Runavik. The Faroe islands ditched quotas in favour of a pure effort control scheme in 1996 which has been touted by some as the way ahead for EU fisheries. The Faroese have not been afraid to radically alter their management structures when they were seen to be failing. An ITQ scheme lasted only two years before being replaced by effort control. The present system also involves closed areas, technical measures and a discard ban. Chief executive Hansen Black said: "The meeting is to familiarise ourselves with the Faroese system of fisheries management. We want to meet the folk, speak with them, see the benefits and speak through any problems that they have seen with it. "One drawback, I would imagine, is that fishing effort would be based on the lowest common denominator, which in our case would be based on the level of the cod stock. "If the system were applied here it may be that we would end up with so few days that we would bankrupt the fleet." Mr Black also said that the EU industry would have to engage in a thorough and wide-ranging debate before pushing to discard quotas. "It tends to be forgotten that quotas are about marketing as well, so it is not just as clear cut." (FIS/MP).-

Airfreight costs cut to promote exports
Infraero, the company that runs the country's airports, is considering a 50% tax cut for perishable products - especially fish and fruit - from the northeast region. The move is aimed at boosting exports and making domestic products more competitive on the international market. The reduction in airport taxes should become effective within the next 30 days, said Infraero's manager in Rio Grande do Norte state, JarnÃÂÂ' Silva. "Our aim is to facilitate exports and increase the flow of foreign capital into the country," he told Diario de Natal. He added that the loss of income did not pose any problems, because the tax revenue contributed to the maintenance of the Augusto Severo International Airport in Natal, the state's capital. Fish, mainly tuna and swordfish for the US market, account for almost 90% of exports handled by the airport. The remaining 10% consists of fruit and shrimp destined for various markets worldwide. According to JarnÃÂÂ' Silva, 2,000 tonnes of export products have been handled by the airport since January, and the airport authorities expect the annual total to reach 6,000 tonnes. (FIS/MP)

A taste of the same medicine in Taiwan
Taiwanese fishermen are accusing their mainland Chinese counterparts of depleting local fishery resources by using "lethal" fishing gear in Republic of China (ROC) territorial waters. The protest is directed at the use of roller-bottom trawlers by mainland fishermen who poach in ROC waters, not even sparing coral on the seabed in the process. Taiwanese fishermen based in the northeastern counties of Ilan, Keelung and Taipei believes that this has depleted their fishery resources, reports the Central News Agency. The fishermen have complained that after the mainland Chinese have "swept through the Taiwan fishing grounds", they have been unable to catch any fish. Taiwanese fishing boats have had to buy fish from Chinese fishing boats. After listening to the protests of the fishermen, the Opposition New Party Legislator, Chin Chieh-shou investigated their claims by travelling to fishing grounds to observe the mainland fishing boats first-hand. Chin noted 80 iron-hulled bottom trawlers from mainland China operating in ROC territorial waters, and even chatted with some crew members. After a patrol boat intervened, the mainland fishing boats merely shifted positions, and did not clear the area as requested. Chin now hopes to draw attention to the issue by accompanying local fishermen to the Control Yuan, Taiwan's top watchdog agency, in the next few days to appeal to the Ministry of the Interior to double their efforts to protect the livelihood and interests of the fishermen. (FIS/MP)

Galicia's productivity recovers
Galician fishermen have caught 8,430 tonnes of fish and seafood since the ban - imposed following the Prestige oil spill - was lifted on 3 February. The Galician government (Xunta) released the latest catch figures and said productivity in the region was recovering Landings from the area affected by the Prestige disaster have also picked up since the ban was lifted, according to the Fisheries Information Service (SIP). SIP figures show that fish markets from Cedeira to A Guarda auctioned 8,430,576 kg of fish and seafood, worth more than EUR 26 million.
The main fish catches were: brill - 1,028,056 kg, weakfish - 853,153 kg and vadigo - 473,218 kg. The main bivalves were mature dosinia - 335,421 kg, cockles - 223,094 kg, pullet carpet shell - 148,702 kg, grooved carpet shell - 112,229 kg and scallop - 53,579 kg. The cephalopods were mainly squid - 263,918 kg, cuttlefish - 95,210 kg, and octopus - 77,414 kg. The main crustacean catches were crayfish - 18,893 kg, crab - 11,039 kg and shrimp - 4,175 kg. Goose barnacle information is not yet available as harvesting only began on 14 April in Cedeira, Ferrol, A Coruña, O Grove, Baiona and A Guarda. In evaluating Galicia's situation, five months after the Prestige catastrophe, the Xunta has stressed the excellent outcome resulting of the gradual and controlled opening of the fishing grounds in the Galician littoral, that followed the chemical analyses of the fishing resources. They also made a point on the relevance of the financial aids bestowed to the people affected, the improvements in the maritime law and the enforcement of "Galicia Plan", whose objective is the environmental regeneration and the economic recovery of the contaminated areas. (FIS/MP).

UK fish filleting bus hits the road
The UK's first mobile fish filleting training facility takes to the road this week with the aim of addressing the nationwide shortage of fish filleters. The bus can be taken anywhere it is needed and it is hoped that the sea fish industry, supermarkets, hotels, restaurants and education establishments will benefit from the new facility. The training bus is the brainchild of the North Shields Fish Filleting Training School, based in the North East of England, which is also the first training school of its kind in to open in the UK. The bus includes a classroom area and workshop and comes fully equipped with a fridge, a freezer, running water, sinks and workbenches, so the skills taught at the school can be taken to those who need them. The training is conducted by expert filleter Darren Adamson, from North Shields, who is assisted by a team of freelance staff from across the UK. As well as offering courses in fish filleting, the mobile teaching unit can also offer training in food hygiene, manual handling, first aid, fire fighting, and health and safety for up to six people at a time. Prices start from GBP 300 per day and can be aimed at beginners or people wanting to brush up on their skills. A fish-mongering course is also being developed. Allan Schiller, project manager of North Shields Fish Filleting School said: "Since we opened the school last year, we have identified the need for a mobile training unit to deliver our courses and teach filleting skills to a wider catchment of trainees. We have a serious shortage of fish filleters nationwide since the downturn in fishing quotas in the 1970s and 1980s, so it is vital that the industry has a source of young talent coming through to sustain its future". The mobile training facility was funded by the Learning Skills Council in Tyne and Wear. Executive director Chris Roberts said: "There is a shortage of fish filleters and this is a prime example of the need to invest in training and development and we totally support this innovative approach." The Fish Filleting Training School also runs a flexible 16 week course which offers instruction in basic fish filleting skills that will help trainees to find and remain in employment. Men and women aged 18-25 are the school's target audience but they consider older, enthusiastic students on the NVQ level 2 equivalent course. To date 20 people have been training through this means with 16 securing full time employment. These people took part on a New Deal programme but the school is constantly looking to find out what employers want and deliver flexible training of the highest quality to customers from all over the country. Simon Potten, training manager of the Sea Fish Industry Authority said: "This innovative way of training is an excellent idea and we fully support the fish filleting school's aims to increase the fish filleting skills across the UK. (FIS/MP).-