Captured turtles returned to the wild

Eighteen marine turtles that had been accidentally hooked by local fishermen were released into the open sea yesterday for another chance at life.

The turtles were nursed back to health, weighed, tagged and then released in a joint operation between the Nature Protection Unit (NPU) of the Malta Environment and Planning Authority and the Malta Centre for Fisheries' Sciences (MCFS). The Civil Protection Department gave its assistance.

The MCFS, which is part of the Fisheries Conservation and Control Division in the Ministry for Rural Affairs and the Environment, runs a turtle rehabilitation programme in collaboration with the NPU. All turtles are protected by law.

Injured turtles landed by fishermen or reported by the general public to the enforcement inspectors of the NPU are brought in to the MCFS. There they are treated and kept in appropriate tanks until they are fit for release into the open sea.

As soon as they arrive at the centre, all the relevant biometric data, as well as the landing locality, are recorded and entered into a database.

Once healthy and fit, they are tagged as part of a regional programme introduced in Malta by the Environment Protection Department, and in which all Mediterranean countries are taking part.

Prior to the turtles' release some 6km off the coast yesterday, their biometric data was once again recorded.

Environment Minister George Pullicino said that in the last two years 30 turtles had been nursed back to health and released in this way.

Apart from accidental captures, other threats to marine turtles include pollution, particularly by marine debris which could be ingested, collisions and accidents with boats or other vessels, and depletion of their food resource.

Speaking just before their release yesterday, Mr Pullicino said Malta recently put forward an action plan to tackle the problems faced by marine turtles in the region.

He said Mepa was embarking on a programme to further study the population of the marine turtles accidentally caught in Maltese territorial waters. The authority was also hoping to carry out more in-depth studies such as DNA fingerprinting.

Educational material aimed at the public was also being prepared and a protocol was being finalised so that immediate action and attention could be given to beached, wounded and other marine turtles in need of urgent assistance.

The NPU of the Environment Protection Directorate was also in close contact with the marine rescue team of Nature Trust, an NGO, he said.

Only eight different species of marine turtles remain in the world so their protection is paramount.

All marine turtles recorded in the Maltese Islands are protected by local legislation. Five species have been recorded, the most common being the Loggerhead Turtle.

Members of the public who come across injured marine turtles are asked to contact the NPU of the Environment Protection Directorate on tel. 7949 6320, a 24-hour on-call service, or the MCFS of the Fisheries Conservation and Control Division on tel. 2165 5525.

Fishermen would be compensated for any loss of tackle or income, as determined by the fisheries director.