Since July 1, the fishermen from Quintana Roo have returned to the sea where they will work catching lobster during the eight-month season.
Unlike fishing that takes place in other areas of the Mexican Caribbean, the Vigía Chico, Cozumel and José María Azcorra cooperatives have permission to catch within the Sian Ka'an Biosphere Reserve, a Protected Natural Area (ANP), enacted since 1986. This has made them an example of how to fish sustainably.
“Right from the start, the (first) fishermen saw the benefit of not taking out all the lobsters, rather leaving the small ones or those with eggs (they are pregnant). They started to make this work plan that we are currently using,” explained Juan Adonaí Ramírez, president of the supervisory board at the Cooperative Society for Fishery Products (SCPP) Vigía Chico.
One of the main guidelines that fishermen follow this lobster season is to respect sizes, they only catch those larger than 13.5 centimeters established by law. Even the Vigía Chico cooperative prefers fishing for those larger than 14 centimeters, Ramírez says.
They have also established fishing shelters, restricted fishing areas with the objective of allowing the repopulation of species. This is also accompanied by monitoring by fishing populations that have been trained to collect scientific data on the ecosystem.
“Some of the regulations that currently exist date back to before the Sian Ka'an Reserve was declared. That's why the cooperative (from Vigía Chico) has gained a bit of fame. It can be said that before it was specified, for example, that lobsters with roe were released, we were already doing it here,” explained the fisherman.
Once the lobster season is over, anglers will return to other local jobs related to trade and tourism. However, some like Juan Adonaí Ramírez will remain at sea to alert possible threats of illegal fishing.
The science of sustainability
To catch lobster, anglers go out to sea. “At the lung, we don't use tanks,” says one of them, since the main method of collection is free diving.
Every day of the season, they descend equipped with a visor, fins, snorkel and jamo, which is a type of fishing net, to a depth of between one and four meters. Upon emerging, a companion receives the specimens on the boat and records the size, sex and fishing location.
“Each community has its own monitoring team that are members, men and women, who have been certified in autonomous diving and also in official monitoring techniques appropriate to the subject of the areas (of fishing refuge) already established in an institutional protocol,” explained Jacobo Caamal, implementer of Community and Biodiversity A.C., one of the organizations associated with fishing cooperatives that has participated in the training and creation of monitoring protocols.
The data collected demonstrates to the National Aquaculture and Fisheries Commission (Conapesca) that the reserves are yielding results by demonstrating that there are larger populations of species such as lobster and grouper, as well as the health of the region's reefs.
According to Caamal, this information is scientifically based and is combined with the traditional knowledge of communities. “This is citizen science,” said the implementer, who assures that these management models are replicable in other communities.
In the case of lobster, the fishermen in the Sian Ka'an Reserve have received certification from the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) and are currently supported by the Seafood Watch initiative for their sustainable management. This gives added value to your product by ensuring that it comes from sustainable fishing.
In Vigía Chico, lobster is sold directly to buyers at the foot of the pier. Many of these are also companies dedicated to the commercialization of the product.
“If we see that there is no excellent price to negotiate, we are not opening the season (there is no sale). Although we may be waiting for it, we wait for the buyer to give it the value that we are giving lobster as fishermen,” said the fisherman Ramírez.
Community surveillance
Juan Ramírez, president of the supervisory board in the Vigía Chico cooperative and a member of the group of 10 people dedicated to community inspection, has been working to prevent illegal fishing for almost nine years.
He has been trained to monitor fishing refuge areas and to alert if boats arrive to fish without permission or during closed season.
“We try to dissuade a little, considering that sometimes boats are stealthy and come prepared for anything. We try to be very careful, although we have the help of Conanp (National Commission for Protected Natural Areas) and Conapesca,” said Ramírez.
Although he mentioned cooperation with agencies, he added that “more presence of the appropriate authorities” is needed when asked about what would be needed to avoid this problem.
For anglers, having a protected area that, through community efforts, has managed to maintain a wide diversity also attracts those who are engaged in illegal fishing. As is the case with other marine protected areas in Mexico.
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