New regulations on blue fin tuna agreed

New measures recommended by the European Commission for the conservation of stocks of blue fin tuna have been accepted by the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tuna.

Maltese fishermen and tuna penning farms will have to abide by the new regulations.

The blue fin tuna stock is considered as of crucial importance to EU fisheries in the Mediterranean and is now subject to a four-year management plan from 2002 to 2006.

A Commission spokesman told The Times the EU believed complementary measures were needed to reduce catches of undersized fish and introduce additional requirements in relation to tuna fattening sites. Thus, the minimum landing size will go from 6.4 to 10 kg in the Mediterranean and the 15 per cent tolerance margin for landed undersized fish will be eliminated. Two other key measures were adopted on regulating recreational fisheries and on the regulation of shark fining.

The Director General of Fisheries Conservation and Control, Anthony Gruppetta said the regulation that interested most Maltese fishermen is the one governing the eastern blue fin tuna stock which covers the fishing of blue fin tuna in the east Atlantic and the Mediterranean. He said the stocks of this species are endangered and require strict attention and management.

In this context, Dr Gruppetta said it is felt that the fishing of recruitment fish - juveniles - would further jeopardise the stock in the coming years. Young fish are normally caught by purse seiners and non-commercial fishing or recreational fishing in the months of September to December mainly in the Mediterranean.

Asked about the effect these new regulations will have on Maltese fishermen, Dr Gruppetta said that "undersized tuna in Malta are normally landed as by-catch during lampuki fishing and mainly by recreational fishermen who target them specifically with trolling lines with specific artificial bait or lures. As the old recommendation stood, it was already impossible for Maltese fishermen to land any juveniles and therefore the changes do not create any new scenarios".

Dr Gruppetta said that the old rules established zero tolerance for tuna up to 3.2 kilos and 15 per cent tolerance for fish between 3.2 and 6.4 kilos. "The juveniles present around Malta in the September-October period are all smaller than 3.2 kilos and therefore not to be landed. The restriction of gears by the sport or recreational fisheries is in line with the present policy and the discussions presently being entertained within the Fisheries Board. These restrictions would not allow catches of these vulnerable fish under the pretext of sport in commercial quantities."

As regards new regulations in the tuna farming sector, Dr Gruppetta said this was necessary to establish the necessary working procedures for the collection of necessary data to enable stock assessment exercises.

He said the fish in the cages in Malta originate from wild stocks and the fact that it is being kept alive deprives the scientists of obtaining biological data at capture.

"This new recommendation shifts the collection of data for caged fish from the catching phase to the harvesting at the end of the caging period. In so doing it also therefore shifts the onus of control from the flag state of the vessel catching the fish to the coastal state hosting the caging event."

Dr Gruppetta said this means an increased cost for the Fisheries Conservation and Control Division along with added responsibilities.

Blue fin tuna in Malta is considered one of the most lucrative fish caught by Maltese fishermen and is normally exported to Japan.