Mediterranean Sea region hosts talks on future of angling

 

The challenges faced by the many stakeholders sharing the resources of the Mediterranean Sea was the motivation behind the First Mediterranean Congress of Salt Water Recreational Angling, organized by IGFA Representative Esteban Graupera in Palma de Mallorca, Spain September 20-22.

The Mediterranean has been fished by numerous countries over several millennia, and a number of fish stocks have been over exploited. Compelling data illustrating the dire situation of blue fin tuna stocks and what is currently being done to manage them was presented by representatives from the Mediterranean division of the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) and World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), and Dr Barbara Block from the US Tuna Research and Conservation Centre at the Hopkins Marine Station at Stanford University in California.

“Overall, there was a consensus that recreational fishing needs better representation in government and fisheries management,” said Emily Collins the IGFA’s International Committee Coordinator who attended the conference. “There were also universal concerns about current regulations and the lack of compliance with some commercial fisheries, which has led to the near collapse of several regional fisheries.”

Sponsored by Graupera’s Federación Mediterránea Para Una Pesca Responsable (Mediterranean Federation for Responsible Fishing), the European Union, the Spanish Government and the Government of the Balearic Islands, the conference also featured many speakers from Mediterranean countries, as well as IGFA Representatives from Croatia, France, Italy and the US.

IGFA President Rob Kramer gave a presentation that highlighted threats and challenges to recreational anglers.  He also offered potential solutions in the form of better communication, cooperation and enhanced

fisheries and socioeconomic data gathering through recreational fishing licensing.  IGFA Conservation Director Jason Schratwieser’s presentation focused on communication gaps that often exist between recreational anglers and fisheries managers and how involving anglers in cooperative fisheries research can lead to more effective fisheries management.

Several of IGFA’s International Committee members gave presentations about the status of recreational fishing in their respective Mediterranean countries.

Pierre Affre, the IGFA’s representative from France presented a historical account of fishing offshore in France and the subsequent demise of catching large fish while Paolo Sala, of Italy, and Tomislav Segedin, of Croatia, spoke about the recreational fishing challenges in their countries. William (Bill) Boyce, an IGFA Representative for California, gave a stunning slide presentation that presented the story behind the building of Los Suenos in Costa Rica and how developing a sustainable catch-and-release recreational fishery can benefit anglers, fish and the local economy.

“The Mediterranean currently faces a unique situation from a geographical and cultural perspective,” said Ms Collins. “International cooperation and fisheries management is critical. Aggressive measures may

be necessary in order to curtail over fishing and rebuild depleted stocks. These challenges are great; however this conference was a critical first step in addressing and fixing these problems.  Indeed, the fate of the Mediterranean’s recreational fisheries may rest with recreational anglers themselves.  Hopefully the insight gained from this conference will serve to help empower recreational anglers to work together and with government and fisheries management to restore some of the world’s oldest recreational and commercial fisheries.”

For more information please contact Ms Collins at ECollins@igfa.org or 954-924-4227.