Last week we told you about the first meeting of the Gillnets Task Force. It got off to an unexpected start, after the Fisheries Department put out a position paper saying that gillnets should stay.
That goes against the position of the Coast Guard, the Federation of Fishers and Conservationists who hold firmly that gill net fishing is destructive to marine life.
Presently, there are still over a hundred fishermen who are licensed conduct gill net fishing.
Oceana Belize is now agitating to get all the data on the use of this type of fishing in Belize, and they want the Fisheries Department to release that information publicly. In a press release sent yesterday, Oceana said, quote, "It is our position that this data should be available to the public, as it is our collective right as citizens of Belize to be fully informed about who is accessing our shared natural resources and how they are doing so. Oceana maintains that responsible fisheries management should include shared data and information about publicly owned resources." End quote.
They say that an informed public should help the authorities decide what to do about gill nets. Oceana Belize's Vice President told us this evening that Belizeans need to make up their minds about this destructive gear:
Chanona told us that they've not received any response to their letter which was written to Fisheries Administrator Beverly Wade. She and Oceana assert that they will keep pushing to get the gill net information released publicly.
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