Fury has erupted amongst EU fishermen over new rules which, they claim, could let African countries fish what they are not allowed to.
A new fisheries agreement will mean a 66 percent reduction in the number of Spanish trawlers, critics suggest.
Brussels says that if Mediterranean fishermen apply sustainable measures, they will be able to go out to sea for 130 days, as in 2024.
As part of this, of the 12 compensation mechanisms in place, it is thought that Spain will be able to apply six.
EU legislation says that it seeks to “take advantage of modern and more cost-effective control technologies and to take into account the latest scientific findings to ensure that fishing and aquaculture activities are environmentally sustainable in the long term”.
But fishermen are still angry about this measure, and claim that, with four months of work, no company will be able to stay afloat.
José María Gallart, president of the Andalusian Federation of Fishing Associations, told El Debate: “Going out to fish 130 days a year is not profitable for any company, nor for the fishermen.”
He added: “Many boats stay moored in the port and do not go out to fish.”
It is reported that the policy will reduce the sector’s capacity to contract fishermen, who are at a disadvantage when compared to third countries such as Morocco or Algeria.
The president of the National Federation of Fishermen’s Guilds, Basilio Otero, told Cope: “If you have a piece of land and you don’t plough it, it remains grass. In this case, if you have land in the sea and you don’t work it, it ends up dying.
“When there are no shellfish gatherers and the sand is not stirred up, the beach becomes muddy and there is nothing left to live there. Therefore, a certain amount of movement is very necessary for the ecosystem to remain alive.”
Mr Otero added: “There are 556 trawlers, but it goes beyond trawling. Most of the fish markets depend on trawling, and if this dies, they would stop going to sea because nobody can live on 27 days’ wages.
“There is an ecosystem around it that we estimate to be around 17,000 families.”
The president then said: “We are regulators of the marine ecosystem. We never go to a fish that is in short supply, we always go to the one that is most abundant.
“If we stop fishing these fish, Moroccans, Algerians and Tunisians will come and fish what we are not allowed to fish.”
