Roberto Izquierdo, the President of Asipes. (Photo: www.cpcc.cl)

Asipes: 'drastic measures' are needed

CHILE
Friday, October 01, 2010, 16:20 (GMT + 9)

The Association for Fisheries Industries of the Region of Bío Bío A.G. (Asipes) argues that the measures taken by the Chilean government "have not been sufficiently drastic" to protect the country's fishery resources.

This was stated by the new entity's president, Roberto Izquierdo, who said: "They have disregarded the opinions of scientists. This happened due to political reasons and when a biological topic is delivered by a populist approach, the result is always bad."

For Izquierdo, "there is no other productive sector" in which the authorities "have as much discretionary power" as in the fishing industry.

Therefore, the leader wants governments, both at a local and national level, to implement measures to increase both the capture of multiple species and fishing quotas.

Izquierdo emphasized that 10 to 12 years ago, the industry had quotas which were "considerably higher than the ones you see today," a situation that, in his view, is an indicator of poor management of the resources, reports Diario Financiero.

The president of Asipes criticized the proposal made by the Subsecretary of Fishing, Pablo Galilea, who presented to the National Fisheries Council (CNP), a request to transfer 40,000 tonnes of mackerel from the south central area to the north.

According to the leader, that order is "an attack on conservation which fortunately did not succeed, since it contradicts the opinions of scientists."

"Rarely have we seen such an absurd and pernicious measure," he said.

With regards to the current situation of fishing enterprises, Izquierdo said: "Nobody is willing to invest in the long term to ensure the activity, production and labour, and moreover, it would be total irresponsibility that a manager should invest without knowing what fish will be available. "

On Monday, the Chilean Government, through the Subsecretary of Fisheries, proposed a bill to Congress that would allow fishing companies to buy and sell quotas, even if they are related or unrelated, for both the north and south.

The government initiative envisages transfer fees of any kind up to 10 per cent of the maximum catch limit (MCL) between firms from both ends of the country.

Related article:

- Law proposed to exchange fishing quotas between companies

By Analia Murias
[email protected]
www.seafood.media

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