The government has said it is dead-set against swordfish fishing quotas, after the world's largest ocean conservation and advocacy organisation called on the EU to take action to protect dwindling stocks. 

In a letter sent to European Fisheries Commissioner Karmenu Vella, the government said that it would be seeking an exemption from any new EU laws for countries which never declared they had used driftnets to catch swordfish, with the exemption also applicable to traditional longliners. 

Driftnets are controversial due to their 'catch-all' nature, with the largest forms dubbed 'walls of death' by sustainability advocates. The nets are most often used by large-scale industrial fishing operators. 

In its letter to Mr Vella, the Maltese government proposed a series of alternative measures intended to help swordfish stocks recover.

Measures include: 

  • Doubling the closed season from 3 to 6 months of the year
  • Creating Fisheries Restricted Areas in known swordfish spawning areas
  • Restricting fishing hooks to a minimum 7cm size between September 1 and March 31

Concerns over swordfish numbers in the Mediterranean have been highlighted by NGO Oceana, which has called on Mr Vella to take urgent action.

The NGO said the stock of swordfish declined by 70 per cent since the 1980s due to rampant overfishing and mismanagement. Local statistics show that swordfish catches between January and June declined by 25 per cent this year when compared to 2015.

Oceana this month published a report in which it highlighted that EU member states accounted for 85 per cent of the fleet targeting Mediterranean swordfish and for 75 per cent of its total catches.

A spokesman for Oceana said the NGO was calling on Mr Vella to urgently propose a recovery plan and, thus, avoid having to close the fishery.

Oceana has pushed for fishing quotas, saying catch limits are the simplest and most effective way to regulate and enforce management of the fishery and to allow stocks to recover.

But in a statement issued this morning, the Environment Ministry argued that countries like Malta, where fishermen did not use driftnets and which had relatively small fishing boats with "insignificant" catches when compared to other Mediterranean fleets, were being unfairly treated. 

"It is not acceptable that countries which ... continue to use driftnets are rewarded with larger quotas, to the detriment of small nations like Malta, which stuck to the rules," the government said. 

It said that Malta would be raising the matter at a European Council meeting due to take place today. 

 

Young swordfish being targeted - Oceana

Oceana identified that targeting of juvenile swordfish as one of the main reasons behind the reduction in stocks. It said that, for the past 30 years, catches had been focused on swordfish that had not yet reached maturity size. However, management action was delayed and no proper measure to minimise juvenile catches had been put in place, Oceana said in its report.

Catches of immature Mediterranean swordfish amount to 75 per cent of total catches, Oceana said.

It recommended introducing a minimum catch size of 1.42 metres, as well as better management of the fishing fleet targeting swordfish.

Marine scientist Ilaria Vielmini pointed out to the Times of Malta that Mr Vella had taken a strong stance in having stocks recovered by 2020. Dr Vielmini said the latest studies showed that, in order to allow swordfish stocks to recover by that date, the fishery would have to be closed.

She said the only possible alternative to this was to put in place a recovery plan setting catch limits and quotas.

Key facts

• The current fishing mortality is double that of the mortality level that would support a sustainable management of the stock.

• The Mediterranean swordfish stock is overfished and has been subject to overfishing since 1985.

• Mediterranean swordfish catches reached their lowest historical levels in 2012-2014.

• The fishery has historically been focused on juveniles, which made up 93 per cent and 72 per cent of the catches in 2009 and 2012 respectively.

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