Compilation of the Thailand work under the Project December 2016 Strategies for trawl fisheries bycatch management project ii Compilation of the Thailand work under the Project Piyachoke Sinanun1 Thiwarat Sinanun1 Marine Fisheries Research and Development Division Department of Fisheries Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives Thailand Strategies for trawl fisheries bycatch management (REBYC-II CTI; GCP/RAS/269/GFF) December 2016 1Eastern Marine Fisheries Research and Development Center (Rayong), Marine Fisheries Research and Technological Development Institute, Marine Fisheries Research and Development Division, Department of Fisheries. Compilation of the Thailand work under the Project Table of contents Summary ................................................................................................................................................. 1 1. Introduction .................................................................................................................................... 2 2. Overview of trawl fisheries in the Gulf of Thailand ........................................................................ 3 2.1. Location ................................................................................................................................... 5 2.2. Fisheries in the Gulf of Thailand .............................................................................................. 6 2.3. Fisheries production of the Gulf of Thailand ........................................................................... 7 2.3.1. Catch and composition of marine capture ..................................................................... 7 2.3.2. The catch and composition of marine capture by trawler ............................................. 8 2.3.3. The value of marine capture by trawler ......................................................................... 9 2.4. Production trend ................................................................................................................... 10 3. Trawl fisheries in the Gulf of Thailand .......................................................................................... 12 3.1. Types and number of vessels and fishing license of trawler ................................................. 12 3.1.1. Types of trawler ............................................................................................................ 12 3.1.2. Number of vessels and fishing license .......................................................................... 12 3.2. Fishing Ground....................................................................................................................... 14 3.3. Production of low value / trash fish captured ....................................................................... 15 3.4. Composition of “trash fish” in the Gulf of Thailand .............................................................. 17 4. Demersal marine resource status ................................................................................................. 18 5. The management problems .......................................................................................................... 19 5.1. Problems of inconsistent policy and the practice of government. ....................................... 19 5.2. Problem of decentralized fisheries management and the participation of the community. 19 5.3. Problems of law enforcement, arrests, and legal loopholes. ................................................ 20 5.4. Problem of controlling the number of trawl vessels and vessel registration and subrogation of fishing gear registration. ................................................................................................... 20 6. Result of research works and activity in project sites ................................................................... 20 6.1. Trat Province ......................................................................................................................... 20 6.1.1. Overview of the project site ......................................................................................... 20 6.1.2. Landing places in Trat Province .................................................................................... 24 6.1.3. Fisheries resources ........................................................................................................ 25 6.1.4. Fish larvae and distribution ........................................................................................... 29 6.1.5. The socio-economic conditions of fisheries .................................................................. 33 .6.1.6 Results from stakeholder consultation ......................................................................... 35 6.2. Prachuap Khiri Khan and Chumphon ..................................................................................... 37 6.2.1. Overview of the project site ......................................................................................... 37 6.2.2. Number of trawlers in Prachuap Khiri Khan and Chumphon Provinces ....................... 40 6.2.3. Landing places in Prachuap Khiri Khan and Chumphon Provinces ............................... 41 ii Compilation of the Thailand work under the Project 6.2.4. Fish prices ...................................................................................................................... 42 6.2.5. Fish meal ....................................................................................................................... 43 6.2.6. Fisheries resources ........................................................................................................ 44 6.2.7. Trawl codend selectivity experiments .......................................................................... 48 6.2.8. The socio-economic condition of trawl fisheries .......................................................... 58 6.2.9. Results from stakeholder consultation ......................................................................... 59 7. Review of Thai laws in relation to trawl fisheries ......................................................................... 60 7.1. Fisheries Act B.E. 2490 (1947) ............................................................................................... 61 7.2. Thai Vessels Act B.E.2481 (1938) ........................................................................................... 65 7.3. The Command Center for Combating Illegal Fishing (CCCIF) ................................................ 65 7.4. Royal Ordinance on Fisheries B.E.2558 (2015) ...................................................................... 67 8. Lessons Learned ............................................................................................................................ 70 8.1. Policy, legal and institutional frameworks component ......................................................... 70 8.2. Resource management and fishing operations component. ................................................ 70 8.3. Information management and communication component ................................................ 70 8.4. Awareness and knowledge component ................................................................................ 71 9. Conclusions ................................................................................................................................... 71 9.1. Trat Province site ................................................................................................................... 72 9.2. Prachuap Khiri Khan-Chumphon Provinces project site ........................................................ 72 9.3. Experiment on trawl trial ....................................................................................................... 72 9.4. Consultation meetings ........................................................................................................... 73 10. Recommendations ........................................................................................................................ 74 11. Acknowledgement ........................................................................................................................ 75 References ............................................................................................................................................ 76 Appendix I Number of registered trawler in the Gulf of Thailand, 1970-2016 ............................... 80 Appendix II Respondents’ perception on measures and options for fisheries management in Trat Province ....................................................................................................................... 82 Appendix III Length at first capture and probability of capture of the economic fish caught by pair trawl and otter board trawl use codend 4 cm. ........................................................... 83 List of tables Table 1: Catch and value of marine capture by trawler in the Gulf of Thailand, 2013. .......................... 9 Table 2: Catch and value composition of marine capture by trawler in the Gulf of Thailand, 2013. OBT = Otter board trawler, PT = Pair trawler BT = Beam trawler ................................................ 9 Table 3: Trash fish used in fish meal production, whole country 1987-2013. ...................................... 16 Table 4: Species groups composition of trash fish from marine fisheries capture in the Gulf of Thailand. Source: Khemakorn