Kenya: Trawling firms defy ban on fishing
By NATION Correspondent
Wednesday, November 15, 2000
Trawling firms continue to defy a Government ban and
operate in the prohibited
five nautical miles along the North Coastline, killing
numerous mature turtles.
Environmentalists and fishing communities claim that
more than five trawlers have
been fishing less than five nautical miles off the
Malindi, Watamu, Mayungu and
Ngomeni coast for the past two weeks despite the
government threat to cancel
the licences of defiant firms.
The protesting groups argue that trawling is
compromising conservation efforts.
The threat was issued a fortnight ago by Agriculture
Permanent Secretary Shem
Migot Adhola.
In a meeting with Prof Adhola, trawling firms promised
to respect the marine
conservation laws by fishing off the five nautical
miles.
Trawlers normally sweep across fishing grounds,
destroying nests and nets
carrying a heavy by-catch in their wake, which are
eventually thrown into the sea.
Small-scale fishermen off the Malindi coastline lose
nets worth up to Sh400,000
every month to trawlers.
Malindi fishermen want the Government to immediately
stop licensing trawlers in
Kenya's water due to their destructive activities.
A Watamu-based researcher, Mr Richard Zanre, said
several environmentalists
had reported sighting trawlers less than a nautical
mile off the shoreline.
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