Ban sought on otter trawling after whale shark snared off Phuket

By PRATCH RUJIVANAROM 
THE NATION

 

 

AN ONLINE petition campaigning for a ban on a form of fishing was launched yesterday after an endangered whale shark was caught by a trawler in the waters off Phuket last Friday.

 

Piya Thedyam, creator of the campaign on Change.org for ending the use of so-called otter trawls, emphasised that the marine ecosystem, biodiversity and seafood sustainability of Thai seas were in great danger as long as this destructive fishing equipment was still allowed to operate in Thai waters.

 

For these reasons, Piya started seeking signatures for the online petition to Agriculture and Cooperatives Minister Grisada Boonrach in an effort to preserve the marine ecosystem, ensure the survival of rare aquatic animal species, and promote sustainable fishing, as the otter-trawlers had just proven the harm they were doing to marine life by snaring the whale shark in their nets off the coast of Phuket.

 

“I would like to use the case of this whale shark to motivate the fishermen, seafood lovers, and all people to show solidarity in protecting our beloved oceans, marine animals and our sources of seafood by signing the petition to criminalise [otter] trawling and come up with high penalties for using this destructive fishing equipment,” he said.

 

“If we still allow these trawlers to operate freely in the sea, we may witness rare aquatic animals such as whale sharks or sea turtles become the next victims, while the very fine net of the trawls will scoop up anything in their path, including juvenile fish, cutting down the reproduction cycle, until there are no fish left for us in the sea,” he added.

 

The petition is open for signatures at http://change.org/whaleshark.

 

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/detail/national/30346050

 

-- © Copyright The Nation 2018-05-23

More destructive fishermen in the country,  cutting the arms that feed them !

Edited May 22, 20188 yr by observer90210

1 hour ago, webfact said:

“If we still allow these trawlers to operate freely in the sea, we may witness rare aquatic animals such as whale sharks or sea turtles become the next victims, while the very fine net of the trawls will scoop up anything in their path, including juvenile fish, cutting down the reproduction cycle, until there are no fish left for us in the sea,” he added.

and the excuse of the captain of the boat that caught the shark: "i didn't know we caught it"; obviously a deep thinker who identifies the real, fundamental issues

lawlessness and shamlessness  = entitlement and emboldenment

Sent from my SM-A700FD using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app

Whey are they trying to catch Otters?

30 minutes ago, Wilsonandson said:

 

 

Sent from my SM-A700FD using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app
 

 

My question is has the captain of the boat been arrested and charged yet, or if not, when will the arrest be made?  The Thai Law on killing endangered species, which includes whale sharks, is clear, a jail term up to 4 years or a fine of 40,000THB.  I hope the video you provided can be used as evidence to put this boat and crew on land and in court. 

14 minutes ago, Dibbler said:

My question is has the captain of the boat been arrested and charged yet, or if not, when will the arrest be made?  The Thai Law on killing endangered species, which includes whale sharks, is clear, a jail term up to 4 years or a fine of 40,000THB.  I hope the video you provided can be used as evidence to put this boat and crew on land and in court. 

Yes, he has been, see Phuket news.

You need to remove the full-stop from your link to make it work.

 

The correct link is:

https://www.change.org/p/ยุติการทําประมงโดยใช้อวนลากคู่โดยเด็ดขาด-ทีมเพื่อนฉลามวาฬ

or

https://www.change.org/whaleshark

 

I had a Tarka curry once  , bit like chicken  only otter .

I have no idea on timing but I reckon it won't be long before there is nothing worthwhile catching offshore here.

Does Thailand have fishing vessels capable of going further into international areas?

Visions of the 'cod wars' come to mind.

I thought Thai fisherman had been forced into compliance with EU requirements..... is this an unavoidable consequence of fishing within the EU requirements,, or a breach in use of regulated fishing gear?

I don't understand the term 'otter trawling'.

 

Otter boards are the attachments on the side of the trawl nets that keep the mouth of the net open, basically being pushed outward by the flow of the sea as the trawler maintains it's trawling speed.

 

As far as I am aware all trawlers use otter boards. Without these, they would be trailing mesh and not nets.

Just to add to the reply by me above, I have just educated myself to the terminology 'otter trawling'.

 

 

I spent a total of 8 years in the Royal Navy involved with fishery protection, boarding vessels to check paperwork, target species, nets & attachments and catches and this is the first time I have heard of this description of trawling.

Stern trawlers, side trawlers, beam trawlers, pair trawlers, but never otter trawlers.

 

Never stop learning, it is good for you..........................