A vessel operated by the Russian Crab Company has been working with the fisheries authorities to lift illegal gear and to release catches back into the water.
Crabbing vessel Anabar spent time at the end of May working in co-operation wth border officials in the Russian Far East to recover illegally placed fishing gear in the Shelikhov Bay area in the northeastern part of the Sea of Okhotsk.
Anabar’s crew and border control officers hauled a total of 2083 illegally placed traps and released 68,000 blue and opilio snow crab back into the water.
‘The company’s attitude towards the conservation of marine resources is in line with the basic principles of fishery legislation and deserves respect,’ said Alexei Trubetsky, head of the border department of FSB for the Eastern Arctic region.
‘Conscientious and responsible use of resources is the basis of the activities of the Russian Crab Group of Companies,’ commented Russian Crab’s general director Alexander Sapozhnikov.
‘Only responsible fishing can ensure the sustainability of the fishery. We consider it important to provide all possible assistance to projects aimed at protecting the population and supporting the ecology of the sea.’
The company has previously provided the use of its vessels to research body VNIRO for research work, including trawl surveys and other research conducted to assess commercial stocks of king and blue crab off the coast of Western Kamchatka.
