Military junta’s fishing gear ban shock most legal fishing trawlers

[Lupatria]

They said the new order was not clearly defined and difficult to understand.

If they don’t understand that push nets and others are not allowed anymore, what are they protesting about?

…that they are not prepared for such lightning action.

It’s hard to believe no one in the industry has an idea what the (CCCIF) and the (IUU) regulations demand after they have been on the desks for years.

[wabothai]

EU and USA pressure seems to be screwing the Thai fishermen badly.

Better not to show your farang face in those villages.

[ResandePohm]

So what they are saying is that the boats registered have illegal gear on board? What was the point of registering if it does not cover all the gear...?

Not necessarily so.

A few years ago many Spanish fishing boats were seized in English waters with illegal fishing nets. As I remember the nets were all confiscated and the outcry from the Spanish could be heard miles away. The nets were illegal because the mesh was to small thus not allowing the small fish to escape which was consequently depleting future fish stocks. All the boats were legally registered but not complying with the EU regulations.

[jpinx]

 

So what they are saying is that the boats registered have illegal gear on board? What was the point of registering if it does not cover all the gear...?

Not necessarily so.

A few years ago many Spanish fishing boats were seized in English waters with illegal fishing nets. As I remember the nets were all confiscated and the outcry from the Spanish could be heard miles away. The nets were illegal because the mesh was to small thus not allowing the small fish to escape which was consequently depleting future fish stocks. All the boats were legally registered but not complying with the EU regulations.

 

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There's been no mention of mesh sizes -v- species, and there has been much mention of "slavery" and "illegal fishing" -- it's obviously a political move, nothing to do with fish stocks. The range of gear mentioned as being banned seems to be all encompassing. There's not much left to fish with when you ban all that. I'm all for preserving the fish stocks, but it'd make a lot more sense to actually specify mesh sizes -v- species, with specifics about the gear and how it should be used - such and not scraping the bottom of the ocean clean. Scotland lived through the ridiculous beaurocrats version of fishing limits imposed by EU and it's had little effect on the stocks. What treaties has Thailand signed up to for international fishing standard mesh sizes -v- species? Asia generally has a bad record on these kinds of things -- killing most of the giant fish of the Mekon, and of course killing whales for "science" and selling their meat. There's always someone in EU/USA ready to jump on any perceived transgression of western standards, when the local conditions actually might make those standards totally inappropriate.

[jonnyscot]

As has been mentioned, a ban on those 6 types of fishing gear doesn't leave much left to fish with,

otter trawl is one of the most common methods currently used by European fishing fleets,, the term encircling nets requires to be more specific since it could also mean purse nets or ring nets which are deployed from the vessel, broadly termed the purse net encircle the target species.

Unless it has been specifically mentioned different types of gear cannot simply be slapped with a 5cm mesh size limit since again as someone has already mentioned different fishing gear are used for different species and different species are different sizes at full maturity.

Edited August 8, 2015 by jonnyscot

[Happy Grumpy]

EU and USA pressure seems to be screwing the Thai fishermen badly.

Yup.

The EU and USA just misunderstand them.

Stupid evil Westerners.

[retarius]

If this ban is strictly enforced it will reduce the amount of fish caught. Great for the preservation of fish stocks but it will mean fish prices will likely soar.

And rising fish prices will be very good for the fishermen....they won;t have to catch as many fish to make the same money as they do now.

[dageurreotype]

If this ban is strictly enforced it will reduce the amount of fish caught. Great for the preservation of fish stocks but it will mean fish prices will likely soar.

Good. Fish will then be more properly priced. It should be a luxury only affordable by the few until global fish stocks recover -- and then they should be fished sustainably. A pipe dream perhaps, but the only sane way forward.

Seriously??? Healthy eating should only be available to the rich and supplied by the poor using slave labour.

[dageurreotype]

If this ban is strictly enforced it will reduce the amount of fish caught. Great for the preservation of fish stocks but it will mean fish prices will likely soar.

And rising fish prices will be very good for the fishermen....they won;t have to catch as many fish to make the same money as they do now.

Well you can use that argument about the lazy arsed taxi drivers on Phuket - 'It's a good thing that they charge ridiculous prices in a closed shop as they then needn't work more than an hour a day'.

The price of fish here is commensurate with prices back in the UK, it's by no means cheap. The 'trash' fish is the big problem here. In the EU we have quotas and sizing which are strictly adhered to. Here, not so much.

[robblok]

If this ban is strictly enforced it will reduce the amount of fish caught. Great for the preservation of fish stocks but it will mean fish prices will likely soar.

Good. Fish will then be more properly priced. It should be a luxury only affordable by the few until global fish stocks recover -- and then they should be fished sustainably. A pipe dream perhaps, but the only sane way forward.

Seriously??? Healthy eating should only be available to the rich and supplied by the poor using slave labour.

So be it, because the alternative is that there is none left for rich or poor. This way stocks can recover and the poor can enjoy fish again later on.

[dageurreotype]

If this ban is strictly enforced it will reduce the amount of fish caught. Great for the preservation of fish stocks but it will mean fish prices will likely soar.

Good. Fish will then be more properly priced. It should be a luxury only affordable by the few until global fish stocks recover -- and then they should be fished sustainably. A pipe dream perhaps, but the only sane way forward.

Seriously??? Healthy eating should only be available to the rich and supplied by the poor using slave labour.

So be it, because the alternative is that there is none left for rich or poor. This way stocks can recover and the poor can enjoy fish again later on.

Again, the problem is the unregulated catching of fish whereby fish fry, aka trash fish', are caught before they are able to mature. This is the very simple problem that even the simple minded are able to get their heads around.

[robblok]

Seriously??? Healthy eating should only be available to the rich and supplied by the poor using slave labour.

So be it, because the alternative is that there is none left for rich or poor. This way stocks can recover and the poor can enjoy fish again later on.

Again, the problem is the unregulated catching of fish whereby fish fry, aka trash fish', are caught before they are able to mature. This is the very simple problem that even the simple minded are able to get their heads around.

Plus no quota.. no sanctuaries ect, its quite simple less fish has to be caught and small fish fry should be allowed to escape and grow. But however you look at it fish prices will go up and too bad for the poor but going on this way would also not help them.

[jpinx]

The food issue is a red herring (pun intended). Thailand has not got a starvation problem, and how many Thais leave food on their plates -- not eat everything they take? There is a level of wastefulness amongst poor Thais which I never saw in poor Africa, where everything was eaten and plates licked clean.

There is a need to increase mesh sizes for the relevant species but there will always be a by-catch of whatever else swims into the net. Fishing has always been like that and once a fish has been hauled on board a boat it's usually past recovery, so throwing it back is not the answer.

Fish farms are one solution, but they need to be regulated or the density and pollution quickly become unacceptable. Blanket bans on most gear is just a joke. The people who wrote that have probably no idea how the gear actually works. As I have said many times - Thailand is under huge pressure from USA/EU and had to do something, but what they have done is saw off the branch they're sitting on........

[dageurreotype]

Seriously??? Healthy eating should only be available to the rich and supplied by the poor using slave labour.

So be it, because the alternative is that there is none left for rich or poor. This way stocks can recover and the poor can enjoy fish again later on.

Again, the problem is the unregulated catching of fish whereby fish fry, aka trash fish', are caught before they are able to mature. This is the very simple problem that even the simple minded are able to get their heads around.

Plus no quota.. no sanctuaries ect, its quite simple less fish has to be caught and small fish fry should be allowed to escape and grow. But however you look at it fish prices will go up and too bad for the poor but going on this way would also not help them.

Obviously. But hey! You're one of those posters who always want the last word so, go on then

Edited August 9, 2015 by dageurreotype

[robblok]

So be it, because the alternative is that there is none left for rich or poor. This way stocks can recover and the poor can enjoy fish again later on.

Again, the problem is the unregulated catching of fish whereby fish fry, aka trash fish', are caught before they are able to mature. This is the very simple problem that even the simple minded are able to get their heads around.

Plus no quota.. no sanctuaries ect, its quite simple less fish has to be caught and small fish fry should be allowed to escape and grow. But however you look at it fish prices will go up and too bad for the poor but going on this way would also not help them.

Obviously. But hey! You're one of those posters who always want the last word so, go on then

Was agreeing and adding extra info there, I am one of those posters who loves diving and snorkeling and thus wants to see healthy fish stock. I know most of those fishes are not the ones ending up on the market but every little bit helps.

Seemed more that you wanted to have the last word too Pot kettle black

I was seriously agreeing not wanting conflict, I like fishing too (though not in the ocean as there is no real fish to catch). So its a topic of interest. But hey if you want conflict you can get it.. go to the corner of wherever you live and wait for me so we can duke it out. Be sure to take lots of water with you it will be a long wait

[Peung]

If this ban is strictly enforced it will reduce the amount of fish caught. Great for the preservation of fish stocks but it will mean fish prices will likely soar.

Not necessarily. Around 50% of the catch from trawlers in the GOT are 'trash fish' i.e. destined to become animal/fish feed. Then around 25% of the trawler catch is made up of juveniles of commercially important fish species that if left to grow would become human food instead of being ground up for animal/fish feed. Only a quarter of the trawler catch is for direct human consumption. So banning illegal and destructive fishing gears could result in an increase in the quality and quantity of fish to be caught by legal means. However, the reduction of the 'trash fish' supply could result in increased fish feed prices, so as most of the fish/shrimp we eat here in Thailand is from aquaculture you could be right,. But wouldn't you rather eat a wild caught Red Snapper than a farmed Tilapia?

[lovelomsak]

Does Thailand have farm fish they put back into the ocean to help keep the stock up.

I am from Canada there the salmon fishery is susstained by fish being raised in captivity then released to go out in the ocean and come back a few years later to be caught and ate. Now you seldom catch a real wild salmon all are farm fish. Wild coho and the farm raised ones most people catch donot even look the same on the west coast.

Does Thailand do anything similar.Or are they totally dependent on wild stock? Perhaps they should look more at keeping the stock up through placing more fish back into the ocean than they take out. Then methods of fishing donot become such an issue.

Edited August 10, 2015 by metisdead
Font.

[Toknarok]

Does Thailand have farm fish they put back into the ocean to help keep the stock up.

I am from Canada there the salmon fishery is susstained by fish being raised in captivity then released to go out in the ocean and come back a few years later to be caught and ate. Now you seldom catch a real wild salmon all are farm fish. Wild coho and the farm raised ones most people catch donot even look the same on the west coast.

Does Thailand do anything similar.Or are they totally dependent on wild stock? Perhaps they should look more at keeping the stock up through placing more fish back into the ocean than they take out. Then methods of fishing donot become such an issue.

What Thailand do anything to sustain fish stock? You must be joking. They are rapeing the seas with abandon, and not only in Thailand waters, just last week Australian Navy boats caught Thai fishing boats poaching off the coast of Papua New Guinea.,

[casualbiker]

Does Thailand have farm fish they put back into the ocean to help keep the stock up.

I am from Canada there the salmon fishery is susstained by fish being raised in captivity then released to go out in the ocean and come back a few years later to be caught and ate. Now you seldom catch a real wild salmon all are farm fish. Wild coho and the farm raised ones most people catch donot even look the same on the west coast.

Does Thailand do anything similar.Or are they totally dependent on wild stock? Perhaps they should look more at keeping the stock up through placing more fish back into the ocean than they take out. Then methods of fishing donot become such an issue.

What Thailand do anything to sustain fish stock? You must be joking. They are rapeing the seas with abandon, and not only in Thailand waters, just last week Australian Navy boats caught Thai fishing boats poaching off the coast of Papua New Guinea.,

Is fishing in international waters poaching?

[impulse]

What Thailand do anything to sustain fish stock? You must be joking. They are rapeing the seas with abandon, and not only in Thailand waters, just last week Australian Navy boats caught Thai fishing boats poaching off the coast of Papua New Guinea.,

Is fishing in international waters poaching?

Look up Exclusive Economic Zone, then look for water around Papua New Guinea that isn't some else's...

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exclusive_economic_zone

[casualbiker]

Funny that they let the poaching boats port in Papua New Guinea though isn't it, I'm not saying the poster was wrong. Just kinda asking for clarification.

[impulse]

Funny that they let the poaching boats port in Papua New Guinea though isn't it, I'm not saying the poster was wrong. Just kinda asking for clarification.

Not trying to be rude- though it's hard to convey that in a short post. A lot of people think it's 12 miles. But the Exclusive Economic Zones are 200 miles, which locks up most all of the SEA water that China isn't claiming already...

Edited August 9, 2015 by impulse

[Jimlove]

Fake it and then moan, thats the real Thainess ... pathetic ...

[Dap]

EU and USA pressure seems to be screwing the Thai fishermen badly.

Awwwwwww. I just can't hold back the tears

[Nobb]

They have been the outlaws of the ocean for so long that they not know how to fish legally. These trawlers skippers probably have little or no education!

[jonnyscot]

They have been the outlaws of the ocean for so long that they not know how to fish legally. These trawlers skippers probably have little or no education!

Most likely they are well educated relating to their scope of work,, with these bans coming into play and their backs to the wall, we may (and I say may) see it forced upon some of these guys to put some fairly sensible fresh ideas for conservation methods in their industry,,