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How the COVID-19 Pandemic Affected the Fishing Activities in the Adriatic Sea (Central Mediterranean Sea)

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How the COVID-19 Pandemic Affected the Fishing Activities in the Adriatic Sea (Central Mediterranean Sea) ORIGINAL RESEARCH published: 16 August 2021 doi: 10.3389/fmars.2021.685808 Lockdown: How the COVID-19 Pandemic Affected the Fishing Activities in the Adriatic Sea (Central Mediterranean Sea) Elisabetta Russo*, Marco Anelli Monti, Giacomo Toninato, Claudio Silvestri, Alessandra Raffaetà and Fabio Pranovi Department of Environmental Sciences, Informatics and Statistics, Ca’ Foscari University of Venice, Venice, Italy The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has brought a global socio-economic crisis to almost all sectors including the fishery. To limit the infection, governments adopted several containment measures. In Italy, Croatia, and Slovenia, a lockdown period was imposed from March to May 2020, during which many activities, including restaurants had to close or limit their business. All of this caused a strong reduction in seafood Edited by: Sebastian Villasante, requests and consequently, a decrease in fishing activities. The aim of this study is to University of Santiago de investigate the effects of the COVID-19 in the Northern and Central Adriatic fleet, by Compostela, Spain comparing the fishing activities in three periods (before, during, and after the lockdown) Reviewed by: Claudio Vasapollo, of 2019 and 2020. The use of the Automatic Identification System (AIS) data allowed us to Istituto Superiore per la Protezione e la highlight the redistribution of the fishing grounds of the trawlers, mainly located near the Ricerca Ambientale (ISPRA), Italy coasts during the 2020 lockdown period, as well as a reduction of about 50% of fishing Tommaso Russo, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Italy effort. This reduction resulted higher for the Chioggia trawlers (−80%) and, in terms *Correspondence: of fishing effort decrease, the large bottom otter trawl was the fishing segment mainly Elisabetta Russo affected by the COVID-19 event. Moreover, by analysing the landings of the Chioggia [email protected]; [email protected] fleet and the Venice lagoon fleets, it was possible to point out a strong reduction both in landings and profits ranging from −30%, for the small-scale fishery operating at sea, to Specialty section: −85%, for the small bottom otter trawl. This article was submitted to Marine Fisheries, Aquaculture and Keywords: pandemic, fishing activities, trawling, small-scale fishery, AIS data, Northern and Central Adriatic Sea, Living Resources, Mediterranean Sea a section of the journal Frontiers in Marine Science Received: 25 March 2021 INTRODUCTION Accepted: 16 July 2021 Published: 16 August 2021 The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) emerged in China in December 2019 (Wang et al., Citation: 2020). On January 30, 2020 the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the outbreak of Russo E, Anelli Monti M, Toninato G, COVID-19 a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC), and on March 11, 1 Silvestri C, Raffaetà A and Pranovi F 2020 announced the global pandemic . COVID-19 caused a huge number of severe infections (2021) Lockdown: How the COVID-19 and deaths all over the world and, up to now, it is still claiming victims. The other side Pandemic Affected the Fishing of the coin was a global socio-economic crisis in almost all the sectors including fishery Activities in the Adriatic Sea (Central (Ahmad et al., 2020; Depellegrin et al., 2020; FAO, 2020; Fernandes, 2020; Laing, 2020). To limit Mediterranean Sea). Front. Mar. Sci. 8:685808. doi: 10.3389/fmars.2021.685808 1https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019/events-as-they-happen. Frontiers in Marine Science | www.frontiersin.org 1 August 2021 | Volume 8 | Article 685808 Russo et al. COVID-19 Effects on Adriatic Fishery the infection, the European governments, among the first, of the Chioggia fleet, considering both industrial and small-scale adopted several containment measures. In Italy, a lockdown fisheries, as well as of the artisanal fleet operating in the Venice period was imposed from March 11, 2020 until May 17, 2020 lagoon have been investigated. (GU, 2020a,b), during which people had to stay at home, leaving the house only for necessary reasons, and many business MATERIALS AND METHODS activities, including restaurants had to close or limit their activities. In almost the same period Croatia (Jakovljevic´ et al., Study Area and Fishing Fleets 2020) and Slovenia (Dentes De Carvalho Gaspar et al., 2020) also The main study area was the Northern and Central Adriatic Sea adopted similar measures. (FAO Major Fishing Area 37.2.1; FAO Geographical Sub-Area During the lockdown period, many people lost their jobs [GSA] 17), located in the Central Mediterranean Sea. Moreover, or were put in layoffs causing a general rethinking of food a focus on the fishing grounds of the Chioggia trawlers and the consumption, for instance with a strong reduction of the more Venice lagoon was also performed (Figure 1). expensive food, such as some kind of seafood (ILO, 2021). For its high level of productivity, mainly due to the presence of Consumers used to prefer not only cheaper products but also river estuaries, the Northern and Central Adriatic Sea (GSA17) is long-life ones (FAO, 2020). Indeed, the suggestion to limit the recognised to be intensively exploited by multi-gear and multi- movement only for necessary activities as well as the fear of specific fisheries (Barausse et al., 2009; Pranovi et al., 2015; this not well-known and dangerous virus has made people to Fortibuoni et al., 2017; Russo et al., 2020). reduce shopping. Another issue was related to the travel ban The GSA17 fleet is composed of industrial and small-scale to and from foreign countries, which caused a block of seafood fishing segments, flying the flag of Italy, Croatia, and Slovenia. exportation and total closure of the tourism sector (Dentes De The industrial one can be classified in demersal gears, that Carvalho Gaspar et al., 2020). Moreover, to reduce the economic are bottom otter trawls (OTB, classified in large [LOTB, LOA losses of the fishery sectors, the government has funded daily >18m] and small [SOTB, LOA <18 m]) and rapido trawl (RAP), allowance for the fishers who did not work at all, and clearly, this a kind of beam trawl typical of the Italian Adriatic fleet and opportunity made many fishers to stop their activities (Dentes characterised by a serrated rigid mouth used to catch mainly De Carvalho Gaspar et al., 2020). All of this affected the fishery flatfish and pectinids (Pranovi et al., 2015), and pelagic gears, sector, and a strong reduction in seafood requests caused a which are midwater pair trawl (PTM, typical of the Italian fleet decrease in the fishing activities and consequently also the related and called also volante) and purse seines (PS). The Small-Scale ones, such as fish markets and harbours. This was a worldwide Fishery (SSF) is characterised by fishing vessels with an LOA situation, affecting countries, regions, and fishing segments in under 12 m and limited tonnage (Lleonart and Maynou, 2003) different ways (Dentes De Carvalho Gaspar et al., 2020; White that use passive gears, namely as gillnets, longlines, and traps. et al., 2021). The use of the different gears, targeting both demersal and pelagic The Northern and Central Adriatic Sea (GSA17), enclosed species, is strongly dependent on the season (Lucchetti et al., among Italy, Croatia, and Slovenia, is well-known to be an 2020). intensively exploited basin (Barausse et al., 2009; Pranovi et al., 2015; Fortibuoni et al., 2017; Russo et al., 2020) where a powerful GSA17 fleet, composed of small-scale and industrial vessels, operates. For To assess the fishing activities in the GSA17 more than these reasons, this area and fleet represent an interesting case 450 trawlers (SOTB, LOTB, RAP, and PTM), composed of study to assess the COVID-19 effects on the fishery sector. Italian (∼91%), Croatian (∼8%), and Slovenian (∼1%) vessels The importance to use vessel tracking tools, such as the were considered. Automatic Identification System (AIS), in the scientific field to monitor and assess the fishing activities, was already pointed out Chioggia in previous works (e.g., Natale et al., 2015; de Souza et al., 2016; The Chioggia port is located on the Italian side of the Northern Vespe et al., 2016; Ferrà et al., 2018; Russo et al., 2020). The AIS Adriatic Sea and specifically in the southern part of the Venice system, introduced by the International Maritime Organisation lagoon. Chioggia hosts one of the biggest Italian fishing fleets and (IMO) and designed for security purposes (e.g., navigational one of the most important fish markets in the Adriatic Sea. The aid to avoid vessel collisions), provides vessel positions with investigated fleet was composed of trawlers and SSF. high temporal frequency (from 2 seconds to few minutes) and information such as length overall (LOA), speed, and vessel Venice Lagoon name. Since the coverage of the AIS signals in the Adriatic The Venice lagoon, a wide transitional system of about 550 km2, Sea is very high (Russo et al., 2020), the use of AIS data for is the largest in the Mediterranean Sea (Libralato et al., 2004; the assessment of the fishing activities and behaviours of fishers Facca et al., 2011). It hosts an artisanal fishing activity, with a during this unexpected period turned out to be very useful. long tradition, which mainly uses traps, gillnets, and fyke nets The aim of this study was to assess the effects of the pandemic for targeting molluscs, crustaceans, and fishes, belonging to both on the Adriatic fleet by comparing the fishing activities of resident and migratory species (Granzotto et al., 2001). 2019 and 2020, on a basis of different factors such as fishing effort, landings, and profits, as well as considering the before, Dataset during, and after lockdown periods. A focus on the Italian Different datasets, depending on the analysed fishing segments, Northern Adriatic Sea was performed, and the fishing activities were used for the analysis of the fishing activities.
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