China to let Ecuador supervise fishing boats in vulnerable waters off Galapagos
- China vows zero-tolerance policy towards fishers and companies guilty of illegal catches, says Ecuador
- In the past, a Chinese vessel was captured in the marine reserve with 300 tonnes of marine wildlife
02:20
Ecuador’s navy monitors hundreds of Chinese fishing boats near protected waters off Galapagos
The Andean nation last month said it was monitoring some 260 vessels, many of which are Chinese, in an area of international waters between mainland Ecuador and the Galapagos.
The fleet has been arriving in the summer months since 2017 and fishing just outside the Galapagos territorial waters, drawn by marine species such as the endangered hammerhead shark.
“China accepts Ecuador’s supervision of Chinese fishing vessels that are at sea,” Ecuadorean Foreign Minister Luis Gallegos told a legislative commission, adding that China had agreed to hold bilateral talks about the issue.
Gallegos said Chinese authorities had vowed a policy of “zero tolerance” toward vessels linked to illegal fishing, and the companies that owned those vessels.
He did not give details on what the supervision would involve.
China’s embassy in Quito did not answer calls seeking comment.
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Ecuador’s navy would likely struggle to carry out any significant supervision of the fishing vessels, given that they are spread out over a sprawling area of the Pacific.
Ecuador cannot prevent fishing in the international waters at the edge of Galapagos exclusive economic zone, which contain abundant marine species that spill over from the Galapagos.
Gallegos said the Chinese had offered a fishing moratorium in the area between September and November. That coincides with the period when the vessels in previous years have already left.
