It is told that the slash in tuna production came as a result of ban on FAD-fishing imposed by the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Conference (WCPFC) to rebuild the stocks of the highly-migratory tuna specie. The ban will take effect on August 1 and will end on September 30.
Being a member of WCPFC Philippines 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. Malcolm Sarmiento, director Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) said that the government will closely monitor the operations of purse seine owners in the region to comply with the WCPFC ban.
Sarmiento also said the government may also revoke the licenses and other permits of tuna producers who will violate the ban. This ban is said to not apply on the 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.
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. Purse seine operators in the city are reportedly readjusting their drydocking schedules to time them during the ban period.
General Santos is home to six of the country’s seven canning factories and is the region’s top export and biggest dollar earner. Total tuna landing in the city is averaging 400,000 metric tons a year and generating US$280 million in export revenues.
