Dear Editor,
This is a follow-up to recent letters of concern regarding Bahamian conch stocks and the official government response to the open letter to Minister of Agriculture, Marine Resources and Family Island Affairs Clay Sweeing.
According to The Bahamas government's website, from February 25 - 27, 2019, the Department of Marine Resources held a Technical Fisheries Officers Enforcement workshop at SuperClubs Breezes under the theme "Working Towards a Better Understanding".
The objective of the workshop was "to commence the process of staff training for fisheries officers... in matters specifically related to fisheries [legislation] enforcement".
The posting also noted that "officers from Grand Bahama; Abaco, inclusive of Moore's Island; Bimini; The Berry Islands; North, Central, Mangrove Cay and South Andros; Exuma; Eleuthera; Long Island; Cat Island; Acklins Island; Crooked Island; Mayaguana and of course New Providence participated in the exercise".
On April 4, 2023, on The Bahamas government's website, the Ministry of Agriculture, Marine Resources and Family Island Affairs responded to Ian Mabon's March 30, 2023 open letter to Sweeting voicing concern about the health of the conch population in The Bahamas.
In the eight-paragraph response, it is noted that "fisheries officers have also been placed throughout the islands. The officers are increasingly equipped with needed tools such as trucks in order to conduct enforcement patrols. In addition, training and technical tools to scientifically [sic] measure the size of conch at landing sites have been supplied to fisheries officers."
(It is encouraging to see that both the FNM and PLP administrations agree on the need to have active, trained, well-equipped fisheries officers throughout The Bahamas.)
Also, in the same response, it was noted that "measures, such as a closed season, a minimum lip thickness of 14mm to protect juvenile conch, removal of conch from bag limits, the landing of conch in the shell, so enforcement officers can determine maturity, and other measures have received consideration. One necessary initial measure implemented in January 2021, included a ban on the export of commercial quantities of conch to help to reduce fishing pressure".
Several questions:
1. Why, after decades of research and recommendations by both Bahamian and foreign researchers regarding measures vital to the preservation of sustainable conch populations, are measures still only "receiv[ing] consideration?"
2. Was a ban on exports of queen conch meat implemented in January 2021?
If it was, consider this: During his June 2021 contribution to the budget debate for fiscal year 2021/2022, then-Minister of Agriculture and Marine Resources Michael Pintard stated that "after a national consultation process, and consideration of international obligations, a number of science-based measures, informed by public consultation, have been proposed [regarding conch] by the DMR".
One of the eight items under consideration was "continued reduction of commercial exports to zero". Note the language: "proposed" and "under consideration".
During this contribution, the minister also noted that "exports as personal baggage should be constrained to 10 pounds".
Hmmm... Given the millions of tourists visiting The Bahamas and the heavy traffic of Bahamians back and forth to the United States (US), should any of us be allowed to take conch from The Bahamas?
For example, if only one percent of our visitors in 2021 left with the "bag limit", that alone would amount to over 700,000 pounds, not including what Bahamians may take with them.
If there is a ban on conch exports, how come there is no readily available record of it on The Bahamas government's website, including The Gazette? Or in the national press? Or as a banned import on US government websites including those for the US Fish and Wildlife Service, US Customs and Border Protection, and NOAA Fisheries?
And why on The Bahamas government's "export procedures" webpage does it still say, "For exports of seafood and endangered species of fauna & flora (including conch), it is necessary to obtain a Certificate of Inspection and a Certificate of Health from the Ministry of Agriculture and Marine Resources"?
3. If there are indeed trained fisheries officers throughout the islands, why haven't they cracked down on the harvesting of immature conch?
— Chris Minns
Exuma, Bahamas
The post The future of queen conch stocks in The Bahamas appeared first on The Nassau Guardian.The post The future of queen conch stocks in The Bahamas appeared first on The Nassau Guardian.
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