Regional Director for Fisheries defends that monitoring programmes contribute to the sector's sustainability
The Regional Director for Fisheries highlighted in Pontevedra, Spain, the importance of the investment made by the Azorean Government in decision-making support tools in the area of fisheries for the sustainability of the sector.
In this regard, Luís Rodrigues highlighted POPA - Azores Fisheries Observation Programme, Demersal Species Campaign, the National Data Collection Programme and the COSTA Project - Consolidating Sea Turtle Conservation in the Azores. According to him, "they meet the requirements of the new Common Fisheries Policy regarding the monitoring of marine resources and their exploitation."
The Regional Director spoke at the International Fisheries Observer and Monitoring Conference, the largest event on monitoring, control and observation of fisheries. It takes place every two years and this year's edition brought together about three hundred participants from 40 countries.
Luís Rodrigues mentioned that POPA, a programme in force for 20 years, "is of considerable strength" and should, therefore, be considered "a good model for the observation and monitoring of fisheries."
According to the Regional Director, this programme, carried out on board tuna seiners, "must be extended to various extractive activities by area of operation, fleet segment and fishing gear used."
"The production of knowledge is decisive for making decisions and for the unyielding defence of the interests of the Azores in international forums," said the government official.
The surveillance system of Protected Marine Areas and some fishing ports and the need to equip all fishing vessels with monitoring systems were other initiatives of the Regional Government presented at this conference.
"The guidelines for the new Common Fisheries Policy are aimed at intensifying the monitoring of marine resources and their exploitation," said Luís Rodrigues. In this regard, he added that "it is increasingly necessary to know how, where and when to fish, which quantities and what species so that we may establish a serious and coherent management of these marine resources in Europe."
The International Fisheries Observer and Monitoring Conference falls within the European Fisheries Policy. It focuses on the implementation of effective management measures to ensure the social, economic and environmental sustainability of extractive activities, including the monitoring of the resources exploited.