The government tries to agree quotas with the operators of these critical species.

Govt opens public consultation to regulate bigeye and yellowfin fisheries in the Atlantic

SPAIN
Wednesday, September 18, 2019, 21:20 (GMT + 9)

The Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food will develop a national standard to ensure the viability of this fleet

The General Secretariat of Fisheries is opening a period of public consultation, as of today, September 18, and for 15 calendar days, for the elaboration of a national regulation of the bigeye and yellowfin fisheries in the Atlantic Ocean, which will be used to manage in a balanced way the fleets that enjoy these fisheries, guaranteeing their viability.

Director General of Fisheries Resources Isabel Artime met with representatives of the fleet that has interests in the capture of tropical tunas in the Atlantic, in order to discuss management measures for bigeye and yellowfin fisheries. 

Representatives of the freezer tuna sector, surface longline fleet, pole-and-line/handline tuna vessels, Canarian artisanal fleet and Northwest Cantabrian fleet participated in the meeting. 

Although the catches of the Spanish fleet have remained stable, the bigeye quotas in the Atlantic Ocean have suffered progressive reductions in recent years, as a result of overfishing of third member countries of the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tuna  (ICCAT).

All attendees agreed to maintain a strong position for the negotiations of the next annual ICCAT meeting, which will take place in November in Palma de Mallorca, in order to defend fair management measures and fishing opportunities for Spain, as well as stop the uncontrolled increase in the fleet of third countries responsible for the increase in catches in recent years.

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