Vigo has become the epicenter of world fisheries thanks to the celebration of the Conxemar expo last week and the previous international convention held in conjunction with the FAO. In those days, many fishermen officers from all over the world came to the city of olives. And how could it be otherwise, the representation of the neighboring country was ambitious. With a big booth in Ifevi, Portugal introduced itself to companies and administrations. Among the attendees was Teresa Coelho, Minister of State for Fisheries.
-It is known that the fishing relationship between the two countries is good. Match?
–The ties are very important and we have a good relationship with the Spanish Government and the Fisheries General Secretariat. In addition, both countries have a fisheries agreement, we work together systematically.
In recent years, this relationship has focused more on the health of the Iberian sardine population. Can we think he’s getting better?
– Sardine is a species that concerns Portugal and Spain. Since it is not subject to CT system [totales admisibles de capturas] and quotas, the distribution is 66.5% for Portugal and 33.5% for Spain. We made a joint management plan and happily saved the resource. We often run scientific campaigns together and in recent years we have been able to improve the resource. We are waiting now but everything indicates that we may have a higher catch level for next year. We are in contact with the Fisheries General Secretariat and express what we will do for the year. Our expectation is that the caps will be higher.
– With the recovery, the Galician fleet begins to demand a change in distribution to make it more even between both fleets. What answer do you give them?
– This issue is not discussed. The cast is all about historical captures. What we believe is that the source has been recovered and that both Portuguese and Spanish fishermen will be able to catch more. Of course we want the sardine to continue to stay healthy so it can continue to be caught, sold and valued. We are working towards this and we think it is important to keep fishing as long as possible so that fishermen do not become unemployed. We will continue to manage the resource well.
Another resource that both countries traditionally catch outside of their common waters is cod. are you still having problems Norway?
-We share. In fact, the last NAFO annual meeting was in Porto which resulted in a 52% increase for TAC for cod in the 3M region. Good news. As for Norway, we will wait because now there will be negotiations. What we are asking the European Commission is to see if the negotiations can be clarified before the December council meeting so that our Iberian fishermen can plan their activities next year as it will be better for everyone.
– What will be Portugal’s main claims in the face of quota negotiations for the coming year?
-What worries us is the cod problem in Svalbard, Norway. Another is anchovy. We have already been talking to the Commission since 2021 to advance the benchmarks [analizar la gestión de la especie] It is planned for 2024. It will be in principle at the beginning of 2023 and our goal is to be able to replace the TAC next year, as it was established for this strain from July 1 to June 30 of the following year. The other priority is hake, but no worries, we are calm. Skating is also a concern because we have a percentage of the scientific quota, but fishermen tell us there is plenty and we will need more data. Then we have the problem of deep-sea species traded in November.
– However, the most pressing issue is the veto of bottom fisheries in 87 regions. where do you see Portugal?
-What we understand is that if a regulation is made, it must include certainty for fishermen to know where they can carry out their activities. In our case, the problem is not as big as the Spaniards, but we have always kept our place next to Spain. Like other affected countries, we believe there are difficulties with the coordinates delimiting the regions and we do not know exactly where they are. We need them to be fully defined. Also, greater participation of the industry would be needed.
Spain has announced that it will file a legal appeal. Will they do the same?
– This issue was discussed in the council and Portugal made a statement of support together with Spain. Our position is in line with the industry and we don’t want them to have problems and know where to fish.
-Sectors and administrations in Spain say that the regulation is poorly done and lacks a scientific basis, what do you think?
– We ask the European Commission to clarify the coordinates, which we have done by letter in partnership with Spain, because we may have problems controlling our ships and they may not know where they can and where they cannot. This requires rigor and legal certainty. Frankly, we stand with Spain, France and Ireland.
Source: Informacion
Christina Moncayo is a contributing writer for “Social Bites”. Her focus is on the gaming industry and she provides in-depth coverage of the latest news and trends in the world of gaming.