I write to you, Minister Devant Maharaj, on two matters, the new legislation and the banning of the shrimp trawlers.
Firstly, I appeal regarding the Fishing Regulations and Management Strategies for the new era, replacing that which was established in 1916, to complete the exercise before the end of 2013. Almost 100 years have passed since we have had a legislative review. Please Mr Minister, we need to modernise the fishery towards becoming sustainable. Why has this legislation not come back for final national consultation with us the stakeholders, and when will it be laid in Parliament?
Secondly, every fisher and fisher community support you and our Government with the ban! Almost everywhere in the Caribbean Sea, shrimp trawling has already been banned as it is simply not sustainable and destroys the future catch. Costa Rica banned it recently, Belize, Bahamas, Venezuela, and now we join these progressive ranks.
All 52,000 of us artisanal fishers support you, but you must be firm with the industrial trawlers, (the D6 Tractors operating on the bottom of the ocean floor) who have raped and ravaged our future fishery for decades. You need to act now, too much time has passed. Trawler operations have completely destroyed the "Battalie" specie of turtles in the Columbus Channel and many more species are on the brink of extinction.
Mr Minister, you cannot ban only the industrial fleet of trawlers (Type III and IV) if you hope to save the fishing industry. Both the semi-industrial and the artisanal fleet (Type I and II) that indulge in shrimp trawling must also be banned. By not doing so, you will be hastening the collapse of the fishing industry.
Whether big, medium or small, they all contribute to the mauling of the juveniles (commercial and non-commercial species). The time is now to hold the bull, the sheep and the goat by the horns if we hope to bring some relief and stability to the fishing industry. This will be the perfect start. The damage to the ocean floor has gone on for far too long!
Mr Minister, after three years of the ban, I estimate we will catch double the tonnage compared to what we presently do, so the Government of the day must be prepared to save the fishing industry and protect the most vulnerable, that is, the fisherfolk of this country.Alternatives could be aqua culture or shrimp farming, fish potting for shrimp as is done elsewhere where trawling is banned or any other type of fishing. Mr Minister, be strong, do the right thing.
Minister Maharaj, all of us who know and love the sea are behind you.
Peter Glodon,
Trinidad and Tobago
Unified Fisher-folk