[New Taipei City News]
Starting March 1 of the lunar calendar (April 1, 2022), squid stick-held dip net fishing boats are allowed to fish squid in the waters at the latitudes between 24 degrees 30 minutes and 26 degrees north. Fisheries and Fishing Port Affairs Management Office, New Taipei City Government (hereinafter referred to as the Office) asks fishermen to follow related regulations to avoid any violation and being punished.
Implementing Related Regulations for Squid Stick-held Dip Net Fishery to Maintain Sustainable Resources
Neritic squid are squid. They are often seen in Taiwanese seafood dishes, and they are economic aquatic products that Taiwanese often consume. The chief fishing ground for squid in New Taipei City is in the coastal waters of Wanli and Ruifang. Lighted fishing boats that people often see at Shenao Fishing Port and in the open sea are fishing boats with stick-held dip nets for catching squid. It is one of special views at night on the northern coast of Taiwan. To maintain the sustainable resources of neritic squid, Taiwan’s central government has enacted and implemented “Regulations on the Management of Squid Stick-held Dip Net Fishery” since 2019 and prescribed that squid stick-held dip net fishing boats are forbidden to catch squid in the waters at the latitudes between 24 degrees 30 minutes and 26 degrees north between February and October of the lunar calendar each year. Additionally, squid stick-held dip net fishing boats that are over 20GT (gross tonnage) are prohibited from catching squid within 3 nautical miles offshore. Moreover, a great number of mackerels and trevallies might be caught when the stick-held dip net is used for fishing squid. Therefore, squid stick-held dip net fishing boats are not allowed to enter the chief spawning and nursery grounds for mackerels and trevallies (called red fiery heart waters, around 6 to 12 nautical miles offshore) during the closed fishing season for these two kinds of fish. All fishermen of New Taipei City are requested to pay extra attention to the regulations! Furthermore, fishing boats that have been equipped with the vessel monitoring system (VMS) and automatic identification system (AIS) have to be turned on before putting out to sea and kept normal operation after leaving port.
The Office indicated that “squid” are one kind of seafood that everyone loves, and fishing neritic squid is the important source of income for numerous fishermen as well. According to researches, the waters inshore at the latitudes between 24 degrees 30 minutes and 26 degrees are the spawning grounds for neritic squid. The spawning seasons for neritic squid are spring and autumn. Therefore, the regulations for the closed fishing season between February and October of the lunar calendar each year and the forbidden fishing zone are to avoid the overfishing of fishery resources. The Office asks fishermen to abide by related regulations and not to violate any rules regarding the closed fishing season, forbidden fishing zone, the operation of VMS and fishing landing declaration to make our resources sustainable and fishery continue to develop.
