The islands situated hundreds of miles
from the mainland in the pacific are a
world heritage site, not if you are a chinese fisherman
though.
An armada of nearly 300 chinese vessels
has sailed halfway across the globe to
lure the elusive Humboldt squid from the
pacific ocean's depths.
According to the new zealand herald, the
associated press with spanish language
broadcaster univision accompanied the
ocean warrior fishing ship this summer
on an 18-day voyage to observe the
chinese distant water fishing fleet on
the high seas off south america.
According to the newspaper, decades of
overfishing and keeping China's fishing
flotilla at sea is a technical feat made
possible through billions in state
subsidies.
It said Beijing says it has zero
tolerance for illegal fishing and points
to recent actions such as a temporary
moratorium on high-seas squid fishing as
evidence of its environmental
stewardship. Those now criticizing china including
the U.S and Europe for decades raided
the oceans themselves, but the sheer size of the chinese fleet
and its recent arrival in the americas
has stirred fears that it could exhaust
marine stocks.
Meanwhile activists are reportedly
seeking restrictions on fishing as part
of negotiations underway on a first ever
high seas treaty, which could boost
international cooperation on the
traditionally lawless waters that
comprise nearly half of the planet.
The publication said Associated Press (AP) observed up close 24 had a history of
labor abuse accusations, passed
convictions for illegal fishing or
showed signs of possibly violating
maritime law.
Collectively these issues underscored
how the open ocean around the americas
where the u.s has long dominated in China is jockeying for influence had
become a magnet for the seafood
industry's worst offenders.
It said that specifically 16 ships
either sailed with their mandatory
safety transponders turned off broadcast
multiple electronic or transmitted
information that didn't match their
listed name or location discrepancies
that are often associated with illegal
fishing, although ap saw no evidence they
were engaged in illicit activity.
Beijing is exporting its overfishing
problem to south america, reportedly said
captain Peter Hammerstein, director of
campaigns for sea shepherd a
netherlands-based ocean conservation
group that operates nine vessels
including the ocean warrior.
China is chiefly responsible for the
plunder of shark and tuna in Asia. By all accounts the humboldt squid named
for the nutrient-rich current found off
the southwest coast of south america is
one of the most abundant marine species.
Some scientists believe their numbers
may even be thriving as the oceans warm
and their natural predator sharks and
tuna are fished out of existence, but biologists say they've never faced a
threat like the explosion of industrial
chinese fishing off south america.
It really is like the wild west said
hammerstein. nobody is responsible for enforcement
out there. For dozens of chinese ships the journey
to the warm equatorial waters near the
galapagos began months earlier on the
opposite side of south america where
every austral summer between november
and march hundreds of foreign flag
jiggers scoop up untold amounts of short
thin squid in one of the world's largest
unregulated fishing grounds.
Total of 523 mostly chinese fishing
vessels 35% more than the previous season
were detected just beyond the boundary
of Argentina's 200 nautical mile
exclusive economic zone, according to
satellite data analyzed by windward, a
maritime intelligence firm.
Of that amount 42 percent had turned off
at least once their safety transponders. meanwhile 188 of those same vessels
showed up near the galapagos, including
14 chinese vessels that went offline in
both oceans for an average 34 hours each
time.
