FAO specialist claims that responsible fishing is desperately needed in Campeche

“The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) warned that fishing resources are severely diminished in the product region because there is no political and social will to enforce the Management Plans and the Fisheries Management Program“. declared Doctor Cecilia Quiroga a United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization expert researcher.

During the workshop “Ecosystem Approach to Fisheries Management” given to fishermen and leaders of fishermen’s organizations in Campeche, Cecilia Quiroga said that species such as pink shrimp, Sea cucumber, snail and shark could become endangered in the near future due to the demand they have and as a consequence of over exploitation.

Given this situation, the researcher admitted that as long as the government does not act firmly to avoid over exploitation, the capacity of the sea resources is at serious risk. She cited as example the pink shrimp, more than 14,000 tons used to be caught annually ten years ago; and today the volume is down to 2,000 tons a year.

The FAO lecturer stressed that the key is to make the Government, the fishermen and the public aware that today there is a need to capture the levels of production of the resource and not exceed it, for which there are two golden rules:

1. Comply with the Fisheries Management Plans
2. Comply with the Fisheries Management Program

Quiroga stated that the fishing activity reached its maximum level of use thirty years ago, and today these two rules that must be enforced by law, so that fishing continues to be profitable for thousands of families who depend on this activity.

TYT Newsroom with information from laverdadnoticias.com