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Photo: RP/FIS
INIDEP confirmed that the Tai An fishes for toothfish
ARGENTINA
Sunday, August 04, 2024, 17:00 (GMT + 9)
The Prodesur company requested that the bycatch limit for toothfish be modified because it claims that otherwise it cannot fish its target species, hoke. The National Institute of Fisheries Research and Development (INIDEP) was conclusive, without directed fishing the established limit is not exceeded.
With the support of the representatives of the National Executive and the province of Tierra del Fuego, the owner of the Prodesur company and the Tai An vessel, Liu Zhijiang, requested that the established limit of 1.5% or 5 tons of bycatch be reviewed. of black hake. INIDEP's response was forceful: it does not apply. Based on reports from 2023 generated from the excessive fishing of this vessel that motivated the reduction of the limit and studies carried out in 2024 after it illegally fished 175 tons of toothfish, it was confirmed that if the vessel does not fish directed (illegal) does not exceed that limit. The Federal Fisheries Council (CFP) must determine whether or not to modify the limit; Doing so would act against the recommendation of the only authorized advisory body.
.png) In the note that was submitted to the Council this week, signed by the research director and specialist in southern species, Otto Wöhler, it is indicated that the establishment of the bycatch limit for toothfish of 5 tons arose in 2023 due to the need to establish a complementary measure, for the registration of trips with catches higher than the established limit, which were excessive but lower than the 1.5% allowed.
The 5-ton limit was founded in 2023 through a technical report that analyzed the operation of the vessel with official and observer data, taking into account the intentionality of the fishing.
The analysis carried out by the researchers revealed that when in 2020 the vessel lost its quota of toothfish and began to target tail or Polish hake, the incidental catches of toothfish did not exceed 3 tons, showing that when it did not exist intentionally the captures were minimal.
A situation that changed in recent years, when the ship began to record high catches of toothfish, reaching an unacceptable extreme in March of this year when it captured 175 tons within the Juvenile Protection Area of this species. This motivated the preparation of another INIDEP report in which the manifest intention of the capture is made clear.
In that report, which is also part of the note sent to the councilors, the vessel's operations in this specific event were analyzed again and it was confirmed that there was "a clear intention to capture toothfish." The evidence was not only given by the fishing areas, but it could be inferred that the fishing gear used also played a leading role.
That is why, in response to the CFP's recurring consultation, INIDEP incorporated new information in this regard, analyzing the information from the last three years, haul by haul, carried out by the Tai An vessel.
From the study it emerged that between 2021 and 2022, while the Tai An carried out fishing operations aimed at pollock within the Juvenile Protection Area, using mid-water nets, the catch of toothfish was always less than 5 tons per trip.
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But during the years 2023 and 2024, the captures of toothfish within this same area were carried out with bottom trawl nets at depths less than 800 meters, this being prohibited by regulations. The result was much higher volumes of toothfish present in the catches.
On the other hand, the institute has pointed out that, when capturing catches in areas with depths between 400 and 600 meters, it is expected that they would also be composed of a high percentage of juveniles, when the maximum percentage for the entire fleet, even for the quota holders, it should not exceed 20%. The report presented by INIDEP confirmed at that time that it exceeded 55% of youth.
In addition to making it clear that there is an intention to capture toothfish on the part of the owner of Tai An, the note raised by INIDEP maintains that, contrary to what Liu Zhijiang says, studies indicate that good yields of toothfish can be achieved outside of the protection area for toothfish.
Furthermore, they have pointed out that if they wanted to fish within the protection zone, they could do so using a mid-water trawl, which would significantly reduce the Environment. In the Federal Fisheries Council, biologists have ratified the measure adopted. With this response, the discussion should be concluded and progress should be made on relevant issues for the actors in the sector that operate within the margins of the law.
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Author/source: Karina Fernández/Revista Puerto
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