MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Fisheries News.

Headlines :
Santa Cruz conditions licence renewal ; EU loses patience and increases blue whiting TAC; China and Chile to discuss; Scientists highlight problem of by-catch; EU bans tuna and swordfish from five countries; Spain takes 20% of European Seafood Exposition; Successful breeding of freshwater shrimp.

Santa Cruz conditions licence renewal

Fishery authorities from the Argentine southern province of Santa Cruz have denied renewal of fishery permits to several local and foreign companies for their failure to comply with established licensing conditions. During the first quarter of this year, fishery authorities carried out an assessment to determine the degree of compliance by companies, checking investment commitments, environmental issues, labour concerns, production standards, and their tax standing. Scrutinized fishery companies were given an extended deadline until April 30, to present the required documentation. Following the deadline, the denial of local license renewals, (issued in 2000 to companies of various origins), was based on the assessment of documents and compliance of conditions, reports El Santacruceño. "We think this work method allowed us to carry out a thorough assessment within the different areas of government involved in fishery activities", said provincial Production Secretary Ernesto Dardis. Companies who were affected by these measures, the names of which were not released, may resume efforts once they recover their licenses. However authorities insist in the compliance of licence conditions and have warned that judiciary actions could follow when serious irregularities have been proven. (FIS/MP).-

EU loses patience and increases blue whiting TAC

After years of futile negotiations with interested bordering countries, the European Commission (EC) unilaterally decided to increase its total admissible catches (TAC) for the blue whiting resource by 350,000 tonnes. This measure would benefit Spain's fishers to a large extent. The EU fleet will therefore be awarded 737,500 tons, up from 387,500 tons agreed last December. Spain's fleet will receive a quota of 159,800 tons, 51,812 tons in Northern waters, Gulf of Biscay 19,995, and vessels operating in Spanish waters from the Cantabrian Sea to the Gulf of Cadiz, 88,0000 tons. While explaining the decision to increase the TAC for blue whiting based on the healthy state of stocks, the EC Fisheries Commissioner Franz Fischler harshly criticised the "immobility" of the other coastal countries involved in this fishery, Faroe Islands, Greenland, Iceland, and Norway. "For the past six years, the EC has been encouraging the other parties to reach a realistic and fair agreement regarding the effective management of this international stock" Mr. Fischler said. He added that the EU intention of protecting this resource unilaterally limited catches for many years. "Far from adopting the same responsible position as the EU, the other parties have increased their catches exponentially and thus demand a greater amount than that which allotted. The EU patience has ended," he stressed. The EC decision and actions taken by the remaining interested Member States ignore the position of the Northeast Atlantic Fisheries Commission (NEAFC), a regional fisheries organisation in charge of managing the resource, which back in 1994 established a TAC of 650,000 tons. This figure is substantially less than the two million tons caught in 2003. Although EC authorities assert they have considered scientific opinions for fixing the new TAC, and despite improvement of blue whiting stocks over the past years, it has been announced that the EU quota increase is only sustainable in the short term. EC measures benefit Spain, Denmark, United Kingdom, Holland, Ireland, France, Germany, Portugal, and to a lesser degree, Sweden. (FIS/MP).-

China and Chile to discuss

A Foreign Affairs Ministry delegation and members of the Chinese government will meet May 15 to review the issue of Chinese factory vessels operating near the boundary of the country's exclusive economic zone (EEZ). The meeting in China will address the repeated complaints from Chilean industrials and fishers who accuse Chinese vessels of not complying with jack mackerel conservation regulations currently in force in Chilean waters. Chileans fear the negative affects on the biomass resource caused by indiscriminate fishing. This will be the second meeting on the issue, the first was held in Santiago last September. Apparently Chinese vessels are only entitled to an annual extraction of 76,000 tonnes of jack mackerel. Chilean Deputy and member of the Congressional Fisheries Commission, Patricio Melero is quoted saying that in the last meeting, "it was proved that the fishery effort within the Chilean 200 miles has increased with the participation of Chinese, Korean, Spanish and other nations' vessels." A year ago this work group defined and set a monthly monitoring plan in motion which has collected evidence showing that these fleets extracted approximately 120,000 tonnes in 2003, equivalent to 8% of the Chilean global authorised quota. According to Mr. Melero this figure could more than double this year reaching 300,000 tonnes or 20% of the total jack mackerel 2004 quota. (FIS/MP).-

Scientists highlight problem of by-catch

Scientists have announced that accidental catches of marine life in commercial and recreational fisheries are taking a heavy toll on vital marine resources. Delegates at the World Fisheries Congress which is being held in Vancouver were informed that turtles, dolphins, and birds continue to get trapped in commercial fishing nets and hooks, and numerous species are snared by lost and abandoned fishing gear. The World Wildlife Fund has estimated that around 44 billion pounds of fish are wasted each year as a result of these practices, which amounts to almost a quarter of the world's annual catch. A scientist from the University of British Columbia Fisheries Centre, Amy Poon, believes the greatest losses of marine species are being incurred in the world's lobster and crab fisheries. She estimates that around 37% of Florida's reported blue crab fishery is lost each year as a result of the species getting caught in abandoned traps. According to her research, around 10,000 lobster traps are lost each year off the coast of New England. Although some local governments require that traps contain biodegradable parts which corrode and release the crustaceans, this can take up to two months, during which time predators are able to enter the traps and kill the victims. The traps which do not contain biodegradable parts can continue to ensnare and kill crustaceans until they eventually corrode many years later. She believes that factors such as this, which are not taken into consideration by fishing authorities when they establish quota, are playing a large role in the decline of many marine resources. (FIS/MP).-

EU bans tuna and swordfish from five countries

The European Union (EU) banned imports of tuna (Thunnus obesus and Thunnus thynnus) and swordfish (Xiphias gladius) from Bolivia, Cambodia, Georgia, Ecuatorial New Guinea, and Sierra Leone because fishery methods used by these nations hinder international conservation efforts and sustainable management of these species. Meanwhile, the EU decided to lift similar trade sanctions imposed on imports from Belize, Honduras, Saint Vincent, and the Grenadine Islands due to their improved fishery methods, now in compliance with international directives. "The current efforts underway towards conservation and management of stocks are essential if we want fish in our seas for the future," the commissioner for European External Trade, Pascal Lamy said. Fisheries Commissioner Franz Fischler pointed out that the coherence between commercial measures and fishery matters allows the EU to combat deep sea illegal fishing. "It is a complementary step in the strategy of the EU against illegal fishing at international level," he indicated. Although landlocked Bolivia does not have its own fleet, it grants licenses to vessels from Asian countries to operate under its flag. According to EU authorities, many vessels use the pavilion of the five countries as flags of convenience (FOCs), due to a lack of government regulations and control. These vessels usually violate international conservation norms. The imposed sanctions will not have major economic repercussions on the affected countries, since they do not export fishery products to the EU. European authorities nonetheless highlighted that closing off access to its market will "send off a clear signal to support international campaigns against illegal fishery." The EU is a member of the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tuna (ICCAT) and as such can impose sanctions against countries which whittle away at the effectiveness of conservation measures applied on tuna and related species in the Atlantic Ocean and adjacent seas. The sanctions approved April 29 will take effect a week after their announcement in the Official Journal of the EU (OJEU). (FIS/MP).-

Spain takes 20% of European Seafood Exposition

Almost 4000 square metres out of the total 20,000 square metres the new edition of the European Seafood Exposition (ESE) has been contracted by Spanish fishing companies. The ESE, considered the most important of its kind in Europe and one of the largest worldwide will host more than 70 Spanish companies, 47 of which are from Galicia. A total of 1,400 fishing companies from all over the world will be present at the Brussels seafood show. Among which the Fishing Products Market Regulation Fund (FROM), an arm of Spain's Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, and the Ministry of Fisheries and Maritime Affairs from Galicia. (FIS/MP).-

Successful breeding of freshwater shrimp

The Chilean crayfish (Samastacus spinifrons) breeding project, developed by the Chile Foundation and the University of Los Lagos is now in its final stage. This technology will soon be ready for transfer to producers, thus prompting an activity that could become massive in five or six years. The initiative is backed by the Chilean Development and Innovation Fund (FDI) of the Production Development Corporation (CORFO), providing 56% of the almost 380,000 US dollars invested. The technological package for the production of this species has already been completed and includes maintenance processes and handling of breeders, seed reproduction, lagoon design and fattening management. Further investigation is required for genetic improvement, nutrition and farming methods. "We believe it will not be difficult to have 50 hectares harvested in five or six years, with a production volume of six to nine tonnes per hectare. However, before thinking about exports the product has to become known on the market," explained Dino Saltarini, project Deputy Chief for Chile Foundation. Crayfish also known as freshwater crayfish lives in rivers in the south of Chile and is the only freshwater crustacean able to be farmed in the country. On the other hand, since it manages good prices in Chile as well as abroad, the sector is very optimistic regarding its production. More than 11,000 specimens were cultivated in experiments carried out in Maullín and Colegual rivers working from "land lagoons", reported the newspaper El Llanquihue (FIS/MP).-