The ban period “to protect tuna stocks as well as other marine resources associated with the fishery in the long term” starts this Friday, as it was announced by Ecuador’s Deputy Minister of Aquaculture and Fisheries.
The fishing regulation and management measure, set in Ministerial Decree 0082-A on July 22, will be in effect for two months, until September 28.
Fernanda Marriott, director of Industrial Fisheries, reported that this measure will govern 103 fishing vessels using seine nets types 4, 5 and 6 dedicated to tuna fishing.
Out of that total, 45 ships will stop their activities in the first ban period and 58 in the second one, set from November 18, 2016 to January 18, 2017.
During these ban months, the tuna ships will remain in different ports.
“The tuna activity in the capture, processing and marketing phase is one of the pillars on which the country’s economy is based; generates jobs and food for Ecuadorians; hence the importance of respecting the closures,” stressed the official.
Fisheries inspectors will carry out inspections at ports in Manta, Jaramijo, Guayas and Posorja and to ensure compliance with the provision.
Last year the Ecuadorian tuna fishing vessels unloaded 301,917 tonnes of tuna, which accounted for 46.9 per cent of the total tuna catch in the eastern Pacific Ocean.
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