06/07/2007 - CeDePesca and the Argentine hake: News to celebrate, but much to do

REPORT OF THE WEEK: CeDePesca and the Argentine hake: News to celebrate, but much to do

(ARGENTINA, 7/6/2007) The fishing authorities detected in Port Madryn and Mar del Plata (Argentina) significant underdeclarations of hake, which pretended to be unloaded as different species. The operatives, who were monitored directly by the National Office of Fishery Coordination, highlighted the insufficiencies and problems of transparency of the fishery controls on land and sea. In the case of Port Madryn, the detected case, in a reefer of Spanish origin, it is even more serious since it is about a frozen and packaged product ready for export, which could result in a smuggling attempt, and two other ships were detected as they were about to enter the port.
The news is encouraging, since as there is a generalized consensus in recognizing certain achievements in the management of the hake fishery (works effectively in the satellite control, there is a greater annual previsibility, the Unload Control Commission starts to work, the cutback of quotas of 11% takes effect), moreover the facts impose the reality of the resource which demonstrates that these efforts are insufficient to ensure sustainability.

This year's INIDEP reports have yet to see the light of day which would confirm a significant damage on the health of both hake stocks, but the fishing travels verify that, except for the Golfo San Jorge, the juvenile percentages are very low, which corroborate the poor recruitment this year. This is very concerning, considering the low level of reproductive biomass set to generate better recruitments in the following years.

In these reports which are yet to be published, a need for cut back once again will arise in the unloading of each ship. But the measurement would enjoy a very scarce consensus within the sector, which demands, with reason, that first the control system gaps be covered from where the hakes no one is recording are getting away. "If we do not procede in such way, the ones who will pay the price of the resource's health will always be the ones that lie the least", they state, with bother.

The first gap is a usual craftiness in the unloadings: up to 10 percent of the underdeclaration is tolerated by the authorities, based on the fact that refrigerated ships do not have a balance on board and the captain estimates the total tonnage captured based on volumes (boxes) and the criterium is correct. But once the real weight of the unloading on dock is established, the authorities do not substract that amount from the quota, instead they substract it from the amount declared when caught. This way, every ship increases its own quota by 5-10%, which annually represents approximately 25 thousand tonnes of hake. The soultion is obvious and quite simple.

The second gap is more serious: with the complicity of some inspectors onboard and dock inspectors some species are declared in the stead of others. In Port Madryn, as it has been proved in last week's case, the longtail hake is the favourite disguise for some reefers. In Mar del Plata this varies.

Not everyone practices this sport, which up to now has not been too dangerous, and those who play in the major leagues are known, and are amongst those "caught" last week.

It is difficult to quantify, but it is possible that this business a few are practicing, in these two ports alone, will cost the natural heritage of every Argentine at leaste 50 thousand tonnes of hake. The Unloading Control Commission, together with the participation of the private sector as an auditor of the unloadings, may contribute to solving this, but it must be strongly supported by the Fishing and Coast Guard authorities with transparent information in time and form, and with physical securities.

Operations such as these are encouraging, but must have clear consequences and continuity in order to generate trust and adecuate conducts amongst those involved in the sector.

Third gap: Rawson. Quota assigned, approximately 10 thousand tonnes. Declared unloadings in 2005 with no legal consequence: close to 25 thousand tonnes. The declared unloadings by a journalism interview: 35 thousand tonnes. When the intention of carrying out an audit was made known, threats were received and the audit never came through.

A number will have to be cleared, say 18 thousand tonnes? And not change it. In order to carry this out, as well as improving the unloading control, the effort will have to be regulated (fishing days by ship) during the summer season in Isla Escondida, a reproduction zone, since the Rawson and Caleta Cordova fleets, originally made up by small wooden ships, have progressed and replaced most of this ships by steel ships, with a greater security, navigability and habitability, but also of a gretaer fishing capacity. This way, 17 thousand tonnes of reproducers could be preserved.

In Comodoro Rivadavia we have the fourth gap. There the reefer fleet which operates in the San Jore Golf tends to meet with dense schools of juvenile fish which, for the most part, are eliminated. Double crime in times of poor recruitments. With adecuate measuring controls from Coast Guard ships, securing the use of selective arts and the zone change in time and form to avoid those concentrations could rescue at least 10 to 15 tonnes of juvenile hake, some 50 million fish, most of which could reach adulthood and contribute to the reproductive process and the recovery of the resource.

The eliminations of juvenile fish are, generally, a great problem. They have less commercial value which motivates the crew to prefer the bigger specimens, since their income is related to the volume and type of fish caught. This remuneration system should be replaced at some point for one that will motivate the quality and not discriminate size. This will contribute to creating a favourable climate for the use of selective fishing gears.

The use of available technology to determine fishing zones and hours of trawling should replace the catch declarations, which are almost always false. And the eye training of the civil employees from SENASA and Customs, as well as the cross control of these organisms, those of Pesca and the AFIP, should complement those of the unloading with the ends to minimize the impact of the commercialization circuits in black and trafficking.

If with these measures, which would imply saving 100 to 150 thousand tonnes of hake, the stocks should not give any signs of recovery, it will be time to agree on new cut backs on the quotas, which will at the same time be accompanied by economic measures from the State, which will support workers and the businessmen during the resource recovery process.

The fishery investigation politics is a subject which deserves to be discussed. The use of technology to ensure the veracity of the information, the increase on quantity of observers on board, the improvement on the showing of the unloading, the realization of the campaigns in time and form, the cientific independece from the evaluation team - free from political pensions - and the periodical revision by peers are basic conditions to better know what is taking place under the water with this very important Argentine fishing resource. And at the same time to determine management methodologies more adaptive and in real time.

This is urgent. But in the mean time, a plan will have to be made for the reduction and reorientation of the overcapacity of fishing and processing. Added value, aquaculture, underexploited species (there are some left) should be part of an incentive package within the economical politics for the sector which will have to include the financing of the removal from the excess of the capacity and incentives for the replacement of the obsolete units for modern ships of equal or minor fishing capacity.

The information was provided by CeDePesca, Centro Desarrollo y Pesca Sustentable (Center for Development and Sustainable Fishery), which is a non governmental organization, based in Mar del Plata, Argentina, who's mission is to work for a fishery activity which will be socially, economically and environmentally sustainable.




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