Victory for the Adriatic Sea; after several months of tense negotiations between Croatian and Italian administrations, an agreement has finally been reached to ban fishing near the Jabuka Pit in the Adriatic Basin from 1 September 2017 to 31 August 2020.
When I moved to Croatia, one of the first things I fell in love with (besides the stunning nature) was the fresh seafood. The fact that it is still possible, to take a boat out, catch what you need for the day, throw it straight on the grill and ‘evo’, lunch is served – “od mora do stola” from the sea, to the table. I can’t even begin to imagine a world where this kind of living isn’t available to my own children or grandchildren, yet this is a sad reality with the state of the world in general; which is exactly why this is a win for us all.
The ‘Jabuka Pit’ – a stretch of the middle Adriatic which stretches from Ancona – Zadar, is well known to be one of the most important nurseries in the Adriatic for Hake and scampi as well as biodiverse ecosystems. ‘The Adriatic fisheries produce 50% of all Italian fishery products but catch has dropped by 21% between 2007 and 2015. In particular, Hake is exploited at a rate five-times higher than sustainable limits, despite the fact that catch has almost halved in the last eight years’ (Source: MedReAct).
“Protection of the Jabuka Pit was a prerequisite for the sustainability of our fisheries and that of the European Union. Our fisherman and those of the European Union, just like 500 million European consumers, deserve strategic administration of resources and fresh Adriatic fish on their plates in the decades ahead of us,” said Tomislav Tolušić in the press release.
In Ljubljana last week the decision was made to ban trawling in the Jabuka Pit, this is an absolute victory for the Adriatic Sea and will hopefully mark the beginning of better administration and stricter regulations to protect the Adriatic fish and sea.
It goes without saying that this victory means a lot to many and is the result of months of hard work by local and international organisations, administrations, individuals and NGOs. Bravo to all involved, thank you for protecting our future!
To read the original article by Clean Adriatic Sea Alliance, click here and follow their Facebook page to stay up-to-date with the latest happenings and protection of our much-loved Adriatic Sea.
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