Palau considers expanding marine sanctuary fishing area

The Palau government, led by the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Environment (MAFE), has proposed changes to the Palau National Marine Sanctuary (PNMS) to significantly increase the area where fishing is allowed.

The proposal, which will be submitted to Olbiil Era Kelulau (OEK) this month, includes:

• Expand the permitted fishing area from 20 percent to 50 percent of Palau’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ).
• Reduce the area of ​​no-take protected areas from 80 percent to 50 percent of the exclusive economic zone.
• Designate Ngatpang as a new fishing port.

According to MAFE Minister Steven Victor, recent research by NatGeo shows that protecting 30% of the ocean is enough to protect biodiversity. He believes that opening 50% of the exclusive economic zone to fishing could boost local fisheries without affecting existing foreign fishing fleet quotas.

Minister Victor said, “Within 50 percent of the area, we can accommodate up to 30 vessels to achieve the target of catching 45 tonnes of fish per month without affecting Japanese fishing vessels that assist in the development of our domestic fisheries.”

To minimize environmental impact, the proposal also includes:

• Expand the artisanal fishing zone from 12 miles to 50 miles from the coastline. This will preserve near-shore areas for low-impact fishing activities.
• Restrict commercial fishing to deep waters outside the 50-mile artisanal zone. Minister Victor suggested that fishing should target pelagic species that live in open waters rather than bottom-dwelling organisms, and he stressed that Palau’s existing ban on trawling and deep-sea mining helps protect marine life on the seafloor.

While Minister Victor claimed the proposals were in line with President Whipps’ policy of balancing conservation with economic development, some members of the Marine Spatial Planning Commission expressed concerns. They reported that meetings were infrequent and that there was a lack of transparency in the data analysis used to guide the proposals.

It is noteworthy that the $2.4 million grant for the Marine Spatial Planning Project was provided by an environmental NGO specifically to delay the opening of the PNMS to fishing while a comprehensive management plan is developed. Minister Victor clarified that this is a two-phase project, with the first phase focusing on areas outside the 12-mile limit and the second phase focusing on areas closer to the coast.

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