Near 15 environmental organizations denounced an Executive’s ‘obstinate’ intention to show, without scientific support, the sustainability of the shrimp trawling.
In 2013, the Constitutional Court declared it was an unconstitutional practice. However, since last year the organizations have warned there is an interest in reactivating this fishing technique.
MarViva Foundation, which is against the project, declared that the text could be ruled in the coming days in the Committee on the Environment of the Legislative Assembly.
The government is insisting on this issue, despite what the Constitutional Court said: it was very clear in pointing out that this activity violates Article 60 of the Constitution and it informed that if in the future the country wanted to reuse trawling, it must provide scientific studies proving that the activity can be carried out without affecting marine ecosystems and causing damage to the economy of small-scale fishermen,
said Viviana Gutiérrez, manager at MarViva.
Last year, the Executive Power convened the project on several occasions during the extraordinary session. However, the initiative was criticized from different sectors.
In October 2016, the Costa Rican Institute of Fisheries and Aquaculture (INCOPESCA) presented a document to the Committee on the Environment, which intended to prove that the impact of trawling can be avoided by using some technologies and restrictions in the fishing areas.
Conservation organizations that support this position are: AIDA, Conservation International, PROMAR Foundation, KETO Foundation, Amigos de la Isla de Coco Foundation, Corcovado Foundation, MarViva Foundation, Tiburón Mission, CREMA, Fins Attached, Sea Shepherd, The Leatherback Trust, UESPRA , WIDECAST and ARCAE.