Inshore coastal waters provide critical habitats for reproduction and key life stages for many commercial and non commercial fish species. This is not new to many small-scale fishers who include closed seasons in their operations to reduce pressure on fish species like sea bass and meagre which congregate in large banks to spawn. However, in many cases, for larger vessels using towed gears, these spawning aggregations are seen as a bonanza, and flawed regulations permit them to target vulnerable species as “unintended bycatch”, whilst rewarding them with generous quotas or carte blanche to do so.
One year ago we reported on the case of the War Raog IV, a 17 metre purse seiner that had hit on a large shoal of Meagre in the southern Bay of Biscay, off Saint Jean de Luz. Since then, LIFE has been working steadily with a number of French fishers associations and NGOs to press for larger vessels like the War Raog IV to be excluded from the 6 nautical mile zone. This alliance includes BLOOM, Défense des milieux aquatiques (DMA), Ligneurs de la pointe de Bretagne, and Plateforme de la petite pêche artisanale française.
Together we are calling on the authorities to prohibit fishing for meagre (Argyrosomus regius) with purse seines (“seine coulissante” or bolinche in French) in the 6 nautical mile zone, along with a ceiling on the quantity of fish permitted to be caught.
Copyright : Australian Fisheries Management Authority.
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