Thousands of tones of fish and other marine organisms are unintentionally trapped by trawlers operating along the Kerala coast every year, resulting in heavy depletion of marine biodiversity and devastation of the seabed ecosystem, according to a report submitted to the Kerala State Council for Science, Technology and Environment(KSCSTE). A major portion of the incidental capture of non-target species(by-catch) by trawlers is discarded by fishermen, while some of it is brought back to landing centers. The report based on a study conducted by A.Bijukumar, Kerala State Biodiversity Board, reveals that the trawl by –catch in the State includes 534 species.
The two-year study was carried from 2004 to 2006 at all the major fishing harbours in the State, including Sakthikulangara and Neendakara in Kollam, Munambam in Ernakulam,Ponnai in Malappuram,Puthiyappa in Kozhikode and Azheekkal in Kannur district. The study points out that the total lack of selectivity of the species caught by the bottom trawling method makes ita destructive fishing method. Even though bottom trawling is meant for commercially valuable species such as shrimps and cuttle fish, it hauls up every small creature on the seabed. Such intensive fishing, the report observes, will affect the sustainability of marine fisheries.
The report recommends equipping trawl nets with bycatch reduction devices to avoid trapping non-target species. It calls for strict enforcement of the Marine Fishing Regulation act to maintain the minimum cod-end mesh size of trawl nets at 35mm. the report also stresses need to limit the number of trawlers operating from the state to 2,500.
(The Hindu, 10th May 2007)
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