The National Galapagos Park, the artisan fishermen and the Scientific Site Charles Darwin try to minimize the impact of the artisan fishing near the coasts. They have therefore developed a pilot plan for deep-sea fishing. This consists out of analyzing the yield and the impact of fishing in deep waters, thus fishing at least 10 miles away from the coasts of the Galapagos Islands. "The objective is to look for quality before quantity, given that the goal is to capture fish with a greater commercial value", indicated Mario Piu, head of the Park’s Marine Resources.
The concept is for the fishermen to capture tunas, swordfish or marlin which are sold between USD 30 and 100 a piece in the local market, depending on their size. An example is that occasionally marlins that surpass the three meters in length are observed in the fishermen wharf of Ayora Port. The pilot plan intends fisherman to obtain fish like these in their trips to the sea.
In order to fulfill this objective, three fishing methods are used, which have been adapted to the conditions of the Galapagos Marine Reserve: longlining, trawling and handline fishing.
Longlining was made manually in the islands. To fish in deep waters, a large boat is required. The vessel carries additional small fiberglass boats.
An agreement was signed with the artisanal fishing boat Vanessa to reach this objective. This ship made a trip with three fiberglass boats. On board of each boat were two local fishermen, a fishing observer and a “capacitadorâ€. This last person is a fisherman from Manta, Ecuador who teaches fishermen the use of these different fishing methods, which are not known to traditional artisanal fishermen. The “capacitador†also teaches artisanal fishermen how to handle and protect the fish, to maintain the quality and obtain better prices, by covering the fish with ice, protecting it from the sun and avoiding bruises.
The fishing observers will register all fishing data, such as location, time and most especially the species that is captured.
The first experimental trip was made ten miles off the east coast, north of the islands Isabela and Fernandina, prior a fishing zone agreement made with the fishermen.
The first expedition was concluded earlier this year, however, the results are not encouraging. A major difficulty is the impact that longlining can cause to shark populations. In this sense the unofficial data of the first test show that the index of incidental captures - species that are not the target for fishing (like sharks)- rank between 70 and 75 percent. That is to say, of each 10 captured fish, at least, seven would be by-catch, and three species like marlin, swordfishes, wahoo, tuna.
The final official results obtained by the Fishery Resources will determine whether the index of by-catch captures is high or not. If reports show that half of the long liners use a steel cable, that cannot be cut by the sharks teeth, and the other 50 percent uses nylon, the by-catch capture index would be considered high. According to Juan VizcaÃno, investigator of Fishery Resources, it is essential to carry out more investigations in other zones and during different seasons. "We must know what happens to catches when the sea water is cold. During these warm months, there are more sharks in the archipelago watersâ€.
One of the weak points of the study is the financing. This first tests took place thanks to the contribution of several international ONG, but the project does not count on a budget for the trips of the next months. According to Copropac Fishing, the pilot plan for deep-sea fishing is born as an answer to the necessity to increase use of longlining by the fishing sector. This method of fishing is authorized in the Marine Reserve handling plan, but then it was prohibited in the Artisan Fishing Regulations, in December 2002.
Some fishermen can accept the fact that they may lose the right to use this method of fishing as long as good economic conditions, and compensation are guaranteed. They recognize that it is necessary to make changes to avoid capturing sharks. The pilot plan of deep-sea fishing establishes the possibility of fishing at any area within the Marine Reserve of Galapagos, with the exception of the agreed zones. An investigative trip will be made every month and will carry out 15 fishing days. One of the conditions is that the recorded capture data is made available to all users, every thirty days.