To protect and preserve national marine resources, the Fisheries Resources Department at the Ministry of Municipality and Environment took a number of steps last year including imposing time-bound temporary bans on catching some fish species.
“The aim of such decisions we have taken is to regulate fishing sector in order to protect fish resources. According to our statistics, the annual fish production in 2006 and 2008 reached more than 17,000 tonnes, which is a threat to our stock and requires us to take new steps,” said Mohamed Saeed Al Mohannadi (pictured), Director of Fisheries Department at the Ministry while talking to Qatar TV.
“The annual production must not be more than 13,000 to 15,000 tonnes and now it is between 12,000 and 14,000 tonnes, which we can term as safe rates,” Al Mohannadi added.
"The kinds of fish whose catching we have banned in some specific season is like kanaad (a species of kingfish) from August 15 for two months until October 15," he added.
He said the decision had been taken to preserve the country’s marine wealth and complying with the GCC Agricultural Committee’s unanimous decision to ban on fishing kanaad.
"Also catching kingfish by using a net is prohibited, along with the handling and transportation of nets. The catching kingfish is allowed only by hooks and hand line," he added.
He said that preservation was urgently required for those fish species which were mostly consumed in markets. "For example, Al Shaari fish represent 25 to 30 percent of the production, and secondly Al Kanaad with 12 percent but there is some threat and that is why it required such measures," Al Mohannadi added.
For Hamour, the most popular fish, he said, the percentage of exploitation was 100 percent which means they can not take more. Al Mohannadi explained that the fishermen had supported the decisions of the ministry.
