According to the plan, the development of the fishery will take place at three levels:
The first was made in the form of fishing capacity, which is prospecting new areas of production and locating and sizing banks (areas of concentration of the products).
Phase two will also assess banks surveyed in the first stage and issue management recommendations, including the suitable catch limits.
In the last phase, the resource will be used in the form of commercial fishing.
The Management Plan for the Geoduck Clam Fishery will help to maintain the ordering of the fishery, monitoring them throughout their lifecycle and ensuring stock levels are maintained.
To preserve the growth stage of the mollusk, the fisheries authorities have established that the minimum landing size shall be 130 mm shell length.
In order to avoid exploitation of the species, exclusive areas for commercial fishing and limited extraction permits have been created. This will promote the participation of licensees in surveillance to reduce unauthorised fishing.
As part of the Management Plan, technological research for the development of techniques for repopulation of the species in aquaculture will also be studied.
Market research to drive the commercialisation of the species abroad will also be undertaken.
Management Plan Created to Protect Clam Fisheries
MEXICO - The Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Rural Development, Fisheries and Food has launched a management plan for Clam Fisheries off the coast of Baja California, in order to ensure the development, reproduction and levels of abundance of the species, whose foreign exchange market generated more than $19 million in 2011, benefitting fishermen in the region.
by Lucy Towers
