Equadorian-based Tuna Conservation Group (TUNACONS) has signed two memoranda of under-standing with the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission aimed at strengthening the sustaina-ble management of tuna populations.
The two organisations aim to combine scientific and technical knowledge to implement a pilot test project in the eastern Pacific Ocean investigating biodegradable fish aggregating devices (FADs).
The Plantados project will develop several prototype FADs that meet the requirements of being non-entangled and biodegradable. The aim is to produce durable devices constructed using materials from a sustained production system and that do not produce toxic substances as they decompose.
The MOUs also aim to improve the evaluation system for tropical tuna stocks in the region; evaluate the efficacy of FADs on juvenile yellowfin, bigeye tuna and by-catch and provide a technical review of best use of the sorting grid together with an analysis of the impact of depth nets on juvenile tuna.
Also part of the initiative will be pilot projects of observers on ships smaller than Class 6, electronic monitoring of tuna purse seiners, a project investigating the collection of discarded FADs and a focus on fleet capacity management in the area.
