MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Coordinated restrictions for hake fishing in Patagonia’s San Jorge Gulf

Over-fishing in Argentina again threatens common hake in the South Atlantic

Argentine Fisheries Director Norberto Yauhar suspended the initiative to limit common hake (Merluccius hubbsi) fishing in waters of San Jorge gulf following a meeting with fisheries officials from Patagonian provinces.

The original initiative was triggered by a request from the Federal Fisheries Council asking to limit catches in the San Jorge gulf to protect the biomass and the breeding area.

Yauhar said that Chubut and Santa Cruz top fisheries officials agreed on a joint management plan of the area with coordinated bans and conservation devices.

“Provincial authorities agreed to a joint management that contemplates operating the zone with dynamic bans of immediate response and the use of devices to make catches more selective” explained Yauhar, who added that on the basis of this understanding, “I decided not to sign the implementation of the measure”.

The Fisheries director originally had acted on a preliminary report on findings from the National Institute for Fisheries Research and Development, INIDEP, which indicated that juveniles in the area were “very scarce” and as a consequence exposed the fishery to immediate risk.

“I don’t want any vessels fishing without the selectivity devices which help prevent by-catches. You can bet that the by-catches procedures will be in place and effective”, insisted Yauhar.
For this reason, it is estimated that the selective fishing device identified as ‘Dejupa’ will become mandatory as of next April first for the common hake season. This is because no alternative to this device has yet been found.

However the owners of the fleet and captains resist the use of Dejupa since they argue it is difficult to manoeuvre and ineffective.
Yauhar was also thinking of having “random” observers in some of the vessels in the zone plus support from Coast Guard staff.

Regarding hake catches during the first two month of the year, a total of 14.387 tons were landed in Argentine an port, which is 59.7% less than in the same period of 2009, when 35.660 tons were unloaded, according to the latest statistics from the Fisheries and Aquaculture Secretariat.

Of that total, 14.262 tons were caught south of parallel 41ºand the rest, 124 tons, to the north. Mar del Plata tops the list of landings with 10.188 tons of hake; Puerto Madryn, 1.710 tons; San Antonio Este, Rio Negro 1.412 tons and Comodoro Rivadavia, Chubut, 517 tons; among other port terminals.

The share of fresh fish vessels unloads was 11.612 tons of common hake; and trawlers, 2.702 tons and coastal vessels, 183 tons and 156 tons.

The Argentine Federal Fisheries Council established a common hake TAC of 338.000 tons for this year, which is 72.000 higher (27%) than the 2009 TAC. (FIS).