West Papua Fishermen Agree to Change Fishing Practices

Jakarta Globe, November 16, 2013

Indian mackerel. (Wikimedia Commons)

Two Mayalibit Bay fishing communities in Raja Ampat, West Papua have agreed to fish for fewer Indian mackerel as part of efforts to ensure the sustainability of the fish population, a conservation group said on Friday.

“We realize the importance of letting the [mackerel] breed, lay eggs and grow so that we can insure a supply of the fish, a main source of protein and livelihood for generations,” said Yonathan Wutoy, a young fisherman from Warsambin village, according to a statement released by Conservation International Indonesia (CII).

The group said fishermen in the Warsambin and Lopintol villages agreed in October to enforce some restrictions on fishing, especially during the breeding season — which lasts from September to November — during which they have agreed to stop fishing on weekends, to give the fish time to lay and fertilize their eggs. The Saturday fishing ban will extend throughout the year.

CII said the two villages made the restrictions official on Nov. 8, agreeing to conduct regular patrols and impose sanctions on violators.

A 53,100 hectare section of the bay was designated as a maritime conservation area in 2006. The mangrove forests lining that area is considered to be a good breeding ground for Lema, as the mackerel are known locally. A 2006 study found that the bay produced 144 tons of the fish that year.

Because of former abundance, Lema have been overfished, which has led to a shortage, CII said.

“In the 1980s, we could fish hundreds if not thousands of Lema in one night,” said Jufri Labago, a fisherman. “Nowadays, it is no longer like that. Even fishing the entire night will only yield dozens or sometimes nothing at all.”

Thew newly-announced restrictions are the result of a six-month campaign by CII, in cooperation with the district’s fishery office and environmental conservation group Rare.