Two fishing vessels have been fined by the Spanish government for turning of their automatic identification systems without legitimate reason.
As a result of data provided by conservation organisation, Oceana, the Releixo and Egaluze have been hit with fines of €20,000 for disabling their AIS for more than 1,000 hours between 2012 and 2016.
“This exemplary sanction of 20,000 euros to punish two fishing vessels for switching off their automatic identification system is an important step towards having more transparency in the fisheries sector,” said Oceana’s senior policy advisor, illegal fishing and transparency, Ignacio Fresco Vanzini.
All fishing vessels above 15 metres flagged to EU countries must be equipped with an AIS device transmitting location, direction and speed to present collisions and ensure transparency of fishing operations. Vessels can legitimately switch off AIS in exceptional situations, for instance when navigating in areas where piracy could be a problem.
Few EU states have sanctioned fishing vessels for it, according to Oceana, which is calling on EU member states to better enforce the law.
“The Spanish administration is sending a clear message to the fishing industry – even if monitoring of fishing is based on vessel monitoring systems, it is not acceptable to navigate without being visible to other vessels or control authorities, and risk putting fishers’ lives in danger,” said Ignacio Fresco Vanzini.
The sanctions are a direct result of Oceana’s analysis of Global Fishing Watch data to identify vessels with apparent gaps in their AIS transmissions.
