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I'm a skipjack fisherman
I'm from a fishing family
I'm a third generation fisher
I've been fishing since I was 17. My work starts at 12 at night and finishes
in the early morning.
600 boats more or less.
I know where the hotspots are. That is where I set my net for sole fishing.
People have relied on the oceans as a source of food and for their livelihoods for thousands
of years.
As technology has advanced we have been capable of fishing more intensively. So looking after
the oceans and the resources they provide is more important now than ever before.
If the oceans are to be healthy, productive and full of fish in the future, we have to
fish sustainably.
Sustainable fishing reduces environmental impacts, leaves more fish in the sea and harms
fewer marine animals.
Sustainable fisheries have good management practices. Sustainable fisheries have good
management practices.
The Marine Stewardship Council standard allows fisheries to show that they are well managed,
and that they fish in a sustainable way.
The MSC uses its blue ecolabel to identify seafood that has come from sustainable fisheries
certified to its standard.
The Ecolabel is already displayed on tens of thousands of products in over one hundred
countries around the world.
Consumers who want to play their part in maintaining and improving the health of the oceans can
look for and choose seafood with the distinctive blue MSC Ecolabel.
The MSC standard is open to all fisheries that would like to be recognised as sustainable.
To be certified as sustainable, a fishery must be able to meet all three principles
of the MSC standard.
The fishery must leave enough fish in the sea so that stocks can reproduce and fishing
can go on forever.
Fishing operations need to be managed so that the wider marine environment, other plants,
animals and habitat can flourish and support life.
The fishery must have good management in place.
It is vital that we safeguard the oceans resources and protect people's livelihoods for the future.
To do this we need to work together.
In this film we are going to look at how the MSC is working with three particular fisheries.
In the Gambia, which is working towards MSC certification. A fishery in Mexico which was
re-certified in 2011. And a fishery in the Maldives, which was certified in 2012.
Working towards MSC certification can take time, but support and guidance are available
at every stage. An Organisation here called GAMFIDA, the Gambia
Artisanal Fisheries Development Agency expressed interest that the MSC comes here and look
at what we're doing here to get some of our fisheries certified.
A pre-audit was done. I think this was the first step. The Pre-audit was very good for
Gambia because it will tell you what stage you are, at what level you are and they identified
gaps. I think it was nine areas. So we developed an action plan to address these nine areas.
This is how we started. In the Maldives we first underwent an initial
assessment phase and qualifying for that meant that a very detailed assessment and study
of how we fish, how the data is being collected, what sort of research we do.
We started the process and halfway through we had to stop it because there was no skipjack
stock assessment done in the Indian Ocean. Well the biggest improvement that we had to
make as far as skipjack is concerned is to improve the stock assessment work.
But Maldives have been collecting fisheries data since 1956 and based on that data, skipjack
stock assessment was done and then we restarted the full assessment.
With the Lobster fishery here in Mexico the region that is certified by the MSC has been
controlled because the fishing co-operatives are very well organised which is really important
when you want to really develop a sustainable fishery.
During the certification process It's very important that both producers and traders
participate because they both share interests in perceiving conservation as a business.
You have several ways of doing fisheries from artisanal fisheries all the way to really
heavy industrial fisheries, and MSC has been adapting its system in order to take into
consideration all varieties of fisheries.
Our biggest challenge was trying to meet the cost of certification.
The funds are provided by the government and people of the United States of America.
So of course you also have the University of Rhode Island, they have been sending their
experts here to work with us and Kaufland decided they were going to contribute 25,
000 Euros to this. And there was another 25, 00 Euros earmarked to go as direct support
to the fishing communities.
Kaufland, WWF, The University of Rhode Island, all these are important partners in our drive
to get the fishery sustainable
It's just a matter of not doing it single-handedly but doing it collectively.
Working in partnerships is vital to support certification for small-scale and developing
world fisheries The government was very keen to take the Maldives
Pole and Line fishery for global recognition and hence the government supported the whole
cost.
The government, the private sector, the fishing industry have worked together along the way
in terms of the technical support that is required, in terms of providing the data and
in terms of the commitment that needs to be given to ensure that MSC certification continues
on.
During the first certification, as far as I know, the government was interested to have
a fishery certified.
The government has supported this process by providing the scientific information from
a research program along the West Coast of the Baja California.
CHAPTER 4: Benefits of MSc certification Economic
The benefits of getting certified from the point of the industry, are that, there has
recently been a high sense of recognition. People are interested, buyers are interested.
There is the scope for a higher value to be obtained for the Maldivian fish product. This
means that the benefit gets transferred to the local fishermen
Due to the certificate we believe that we will be more successful in selling our tuna
to the European market and earn more from this.
We have been getting a premium which we have been passing on to the fishermen and their
health, education is being taken care of.
So there have been many interesting benefits here. For example before we were responsible
for providing our own water, electricity, and basic utilities.
After the certification process the international recognition gave them the power to lobby and
negotiate with the Mexican authorities. This allowed for their demands to be met, which
were for the provision of utilities.
The truth is that it is clear that things are very different now.
All the biological, social, economic are all contained in the environment. So any injustice
you do on any of those areas you are really, directly affecting the environment.
Along the coast we have identified areas as breeding grounds of different species coming
here during seasonal breeding periods.
We call them spar-buoys. They are indicators for people to know that where the buoy ends
to onshore is a no go zone.
It's an area closed off from May to October each year to conserve and get this stock regenerated.
To achieve the sustainability in the Lobster population is very important because it warranties
the lobster catch for fishermen.
What happens is that the lobsters carrying eggs must be carefully returned to the sea.
Lobsters are full of small eggs and therefore they must be carefully treated, because that's
where sustainability starts.
We have to take care of this part to guarantee a good future.
There is no other way. So, release them to the sea...
It is very important to have an ecolabel and MSC is one of the most recognized labels by
industries and the retailers.
MSC certification is not just a seal on your product I believe it's something more than
that. It takes your fishery to another level it helps to keep the fishery managed, sustained,
have areas of scrutinisation to make the fishery more developed and helps you to sustain it
for generations to come.
We are dealing with a resource it has to be managed, it has to be sustainably managed.
Otherwise it will not be there for our future generations to use.
When it comes to the pole and line skipjack fishery those who deserve the benefit most
are our local fishermen because their century old practices and their efforts have made
us achieve this certification.
This needs to pass on to other generations the way it has been passed on to them by their
forefathers.
Sustainable fisheries is our responsibility. We have to care for it for the future.