Alarm at rogue China fishing fleet’s activities in Galapagos

CHINESE vessels accounted for 99 per cent of fishing activity in the waters off the Galapagos Marine Reserve last month, according to research, adding to concerns that unsustainable fishing could lead to lasting damage.

A study by Oceana, a non-profit ocean conservation group, showed that only 10 non-chinese-flagged vessels were in the area in that time compared with hundreds of Chinese boats fishing primarily for squid, alarming conservationists working on the Ecuadorean wildlife haven.

Squid is key to the diet of wellknown local species, such as fur seals and hammerhead sharks, as well as commercial species, including tuna.

Oceana also found that Chineseflagged vessels were turning off their public tracking devices, on average for two days at a time.

One vessel disabled tracking for as long as 17 days. Blocking tracking devices could “enable illicit activities,” Oceana wrote in the report.

Environmentalists have been sounding the alarm about the number of Chinese vessels in the Galapagos over unsustainable fishing practices.

Conservation groups have also said the vessels further endanger the ecologically sensitive area by throwing plastic waste overboard, polluting the ocean and nearby beaches.

Such activity “threatens the Galapagos Islands, the rare species there and everyone that depends on it for food and livelihoods”, said Maria Valentine, Oceana’s illegal fishing and transparency analyst.

“The situation playing out in the Galapagos should raise serious questions and concerns about the impact China’s massive fishing fleet is having on the oceans it sails.”

After environmental concerns were raised, China promised a “zero tolerance” policy on illegal fishing but Oceana highlighted that recent activities “run counter” to China’s own fishing rules.

China is ranked as the worst nation in the world on an international fishing index that tracks illegal, unregulated and unreported fishing for frequent violations of overfishing, targeting endangered species, false licensing and forced labour.