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Alarm Sounded for Patagonian Seas |
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By Marcela Valente*
A
new report warns that excessive fishing threatens penguins and whales
in the South Atlantic. But local experts disagree about the degree
of danger for the marine ecosystem and its fauna.
BUENOS AIRES, Jan 20 (Tierramérica) - Some
believe it was exaggerated; others that it will help prevent future
environmental tragedy. These are the two extremes in reactions in
Argentina to a report on the impact of anchovy fishing in the seas
off the Patagonia region.
In an article published in the Jan. 5 edition of Science magazine,
scientists from the Argentine Fundación Patagonia Natural and the
U.S. University of Washington warned that fishing for anchoita (Engraulis
anchoita) in the South Atlantic threatens endemic species that sustain
ecotourism in the region.
Tens of thousands of visitors from Argentina and abroad head to
the coasts of the Patagonian provinces of Chubut and Santa Cruz,
drawn by the chance to go on whale-watching tours, see penguins,
sea lions and sea elephants in nature preserves, and spot birds
like the albatross and cormorant.
The Science article warned that this paradise could be dramatically
altered if there is expanded fishing for anchoita, which represents
50 percent of the diet of the Magellanic penguin (Spheniscus magellanicus),
and is also food for hake, cormorants, dolphins, sea lions and dozens
of other species in the region.
The alert "proposes an integral perspective of use of marine resources,
which encompasses the interaction of all species," biologist Claudio
Campagna, a researcher from the National Patagonia Center and expert
in sea mammals, told Tierramérica.
Campagna believes that "the world's fisheries are rarely sustainable,
and their impact on other activities and interests that rely on
the same resources is not taken into account when it comes to calculating
the benefits of fishing."
"The ideal would be to scientifically model the functioning of the
system in order to understand what effects the extraction of critical
species would have on processes that involve endemic and emblematic
species of the Patagonian coast," he added.
But Ernesto Godelman, president of the non-governmental Center for
the Defense of National Fishing (Cedepesca), disagrees with so much
caution.
"It's good to raise awareness about taking care of the marine environment,
but here there is somewhat of an overreaction in prevention. The
information doesn't coincide with what Science has published, and
much less with the subsequent repercussions," he said in a Tierramérica
interview.
For now, "we don't see any indications that the current or planned
exploitation of the Patagonian anchoita endangers sustainability
in a broad sense, that is, including food-chain interactions," Godelman
said.
According to a study by the National Institute of Fishing Research
and Development (Inidep), to date "the commercial exploitation of
Patagonian anchoita has not reached great levels, averaging some
2,000 tons annually since the 1960s."
The volume of the total catch differs greatly from the limit approved
by Inidep for the population between southern Brazil and the southern
coast of Buenos Aires province (anchoita bonaerense), the maximum
is 120,000 tons annually. For the Patagonian anchoita it is 60,000
tons.
"At Inidep we are very caution, and we maintain that the problem
is not so dramatic," a scientist from the institute who participated
in the research told Tierramérica, requesting anonymity.
Concern over this resource began in 2003 when the Federal Fisheries
Council approved the development research plan for sustainable Patagonian
anchovy fishing, proposed by the province of Chubut.
Faced with the emergency declared for the over-fished common hake,
or merluza (Merlucius hubbsi), the province turned to an under-exploited
species. The experimental plan, extended in 2005, had the support
of officials, fishing companies, Inidep scientists and the Fundación
Patagonia Natural.
Now the Fundación argues that the Inidep studies did not include
specific mechanisms for quantifying the effects of anchoita fishing
on other fish and animal species that rely on it as a food source.
And the group expressed concern that the catch would be used to
produce fishmeal.
The Inidep source responded that the institute "is not studying
in particular the impact on other species," but that they are being
taken into account in looking at the parameters of the natural death
of the anchoitas when other animals feed on them.
As for the fear that the species is used as a raw material for the
fishmeal industry, Godelman explained that the plan approved by
the Council established that the participating firms "may not have
as an objective the manufacture of fishmeal."
The head of Cedepesca indicated that only the anchoita bonaerense
-- not the Patagonian anchoita -- is used for that purpose, and
not in Argentina, but neighboring Uruguay. The two countries catch
a combined total of 70,000 tons yearly (out of a maximum 120,000
tons allowed), and most is utilized for fishmeal.
"This indeed is a problem that must be closely tracked. The exploitation
of the Buenos Aires anchoita for producing fishmeal represents a
real threat," Godelman said.
* Marcela Valente is an IPS correspondent. |
