Pair trawling and Bottom trawling

35 harvest them. Once in the water, DDT also poisons the fish causing some to float and killing others.

3.1 Pair trawling and Bottom trawling

One of the complaints that the fishers kept drumming about was the problem of pair trawling and bottom trawling. According to one of the chief fishermen, “The inability of President Kuffour’s administration to check this phenomenon upon several complaints from the fisher folk and their leaders was a major reason they lost votes in all the coastal areas of Ghana”. Although, the artisanal fishers are not the culprits, they are concerned because it has debilitating effects on their operations and livelihood. Pair trawling is a form of fishing in which two boats with the same or similar speed or power are used to fish in pairs. In the course of fishing, the dragging net traps all manner of fishes that come into contact with them. The by-catch or what is known as “logo” in local parlance is dumped into the sea thereby polluting the water. The fishers were much worried about the impact the activities had on sustainability of marine fishing. It is documented that by-catch constitute over forty percent 40 of global marine catch. The fisher folk condemned the activities of the ‘Saeko’ operators. That is, those canoes which go to buy the logo or by catch from the industrial vessels. According to the respondents, formally, logo was dumped into the water or was given to the artisanal fishers free of charge. But currently, they have people registered with the industrial vessels who have the right to bring the by-catch to the shore for marketing. They called for an immediate ban of the “saeko” operation. The Seako dealers who were interviewed were of the opinion that their operations prevent the dumping of the logo into the sea with its ecological effects on marine life. In addition, they are now the main suppliers of fish to the rural communities. Thus, their work is rather helping the poor so they should be commended rather than condemned. One development that is of a bother to the fisher folks which they think needs urgent attention is the issue of industrial vessels or fleets trawling within the 30m depth to 12 nautical miles - Inshore Exclusive Zone IEZ reserved for the artisanal fishing folks and by so doing ploughing through their nets. They intimated that some times when they are able to identify the vessels responsible, they report to the Fisheries Commission for arbitration and they are compensated for the loss. Yet, the major problem is that sometimes they are unable to identify the exact culprits. In a response to the accusation, a respondent from one of the industrial operators admitted the offense. He said that sometimes they plough through the nets of the artisanal fishers and pay compensation when the issue is brought to their attention. He indicated that this particular problem has arisen because of the regulatory regime the country has at the moment. He said while they cannot fish within the IEZ, the artisanal fishers are allowed to operate beyond the 12 nautical miles and lay their nets especially, the in- shore vessels with propellers. Secondly, the nets are normally laid without signs or indicators to warn the bigger vessels or the industrial vessels. That account for why their nets are destroyed. To him, part of the reason for this development is that artisanal fishers do not have the instruments to determine nautical miles or range within which they are operating. On the accusation of their vessels straying into the reserved areas for the artisanal fishers, he said some times it is due to the movement of the fish. Sometimes they track the fish from the high seas. It may not be prudent 36 for them to leave them just because they have entered the IEZ. He admitted that sometimes fishing in the IEZ is deliberate because the fish is normally found in the exclusive zones.

3.2 Who is engaged in these practices and generally when and where