In Philippines local tuna producers are bracing themselves for a major cut in tuna production beginning next month. It is said that the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Conference (WCPFC) has decided to cut in tuna production to replenish stocks of the highly-migratory tuna specie.
It is informed that the ban will take effect on August 1 and will end on September 30. The Philippines is a signatory to a resolution by member countries and organizations of WCPFC, which set the ban on tuna fishing in fish aggregating devices (FADs), locally known as payaw, during the spawning period which fall in the months of July up to September.
Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) director Malcolm Sarmiento told that the government will closely monitor the operations of purse seine owners in the region to comply with the WCPFC ban. If any found violating the ban could face delisting of their fishing vessels from WCPFC and they could be apprehended in international waters. He added that the government may also revoke the licenses and other permits of tuna producers who will violate the ban.
It is told that the two months ban, however, does not apply to hand line tuna fishing and will also not cover FAD fishing inside the country’s 200-nautical mile exclusive economic zone (EEZ) and municipal waters. Commercial fishing is already prohibited within the 15-kilomter municipal waters under the Fisheries Code of the Philippines.
Bayani Freduluces, executive director of the Socsksargen Federation of Fishing and Allied Industries (SFFAI), said fishing companies will have their vessels included in the illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) list if they will be caught violating the ban. He also said that the purse seine operators are willing to sacrifice short term losses if it will mean the restocking of tuna specie that is being threatened by overfishing. Purse seine operators in the city are reportedly readjusting their drydocking schedules to time them during the ban period.
