The Regional Fisheries Council, an advisory body to the Regional Secretariat for the Sea, Science and Technology, will meet Tuesday, December 3, in Horta to discuss management measures and strategies for the sector.
 
The Regional Secretary for the Sea stated that one of the topics under discussion with the members of the council concerns the "support for the cessation of less selective fishing gear," such as gillnets, traps and bottom longlines.
 
According to Gui Menezes, “new legislative measures will be presented with the aim of continuing to ensure the ecological, economic and social sustainability of the sector.” They will focus on the implementation of regional fishing quotas for some species and the definition of fishing restricted areas with the purpose of increasing catches in these areas for the medium term."
 
The Regional Secretary also stated that, following the approval of the Fisheries Restructuring Plan in 2018, the assessment of the initiatives undertaken by the Regional Government of the Azores will be presented to the members of the council.
 
According to Gui Menezes, the meeting is also aimed at the discussion of the management models of the main fisheries, namely red seabream, splendid alfonsino and alfonsino, and the presentation of the "results of the last monitoring campaign on demersal and deep-sea fish species in the Azores.”
 
The National Data Collection Programme, the collection of data on recreational fishing and the boarding of fishing observers are other matters, among others, to be addressed at the meeting.