Trawling ban saves sea turtles

TDT | Manama

The number of dead sea turtles has noticeably decreased in Bahrain during the past two years, the Kingdom’s main animal welfare institution recently confirmed.

The Bahrain Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (BSPCA) credited the sharp decline in the number of dead turtles found floating at sea and on the island’s shores to a recent government resolution to curb harmful fishing practices.

While returning two sea turtles to sea after treating it at the society, BSPCA Chairman Mahmood Faraj said the number of dead turtles in the Kingdom has noticeably dropped thanks to the Ministerial Resolution (205) for 2018, banning fishing using trawling nets, issued by the Works, Municipalities Affairs and Urban Planning Ministry two years ago.

Faraj revealed that the BSPCA received around 32 sea turtles from seafarers and beachgoers in Bahrain during the past four years, and noted that the society only received two turtles this year.

He added that the two turtles were injured when they were received in January and February, and clarified that they were provided with the necessary treatment before returning them to the water recently, in cooperation with the Supreme Council for Environment (SCE).

Praising the Ministry’s resolution to ban trawling, Faraj described it as a wise decision, while at the same time expressing appreciation to the efforts dedicated by divers and environmentalists who periodically clean Bahrain’s seabed and coasts.

The BSPCA chairman also lauded the wise directives of His Majesty the King’s Personal Representative and SCE President HH Shaikh Abdulla bin Hamad Al Khalifa, and the follow-up of SCE CEO Mohammed Mubarak Bindainah, with the aim of protecting Bahrain’s environment and constant cooperation with the society in this regard.

As reported earlier, increasing numbers of sea creature carcasses including whales, dolphins, turtles and more have washed ashore on the Kingdom’s beaches during the past few years.

Environmentalists and nature-lovers have warned of the repetition of such incidents, blaming it on harmful fishing methods and wrong behaviours of some fishermen who destroy the marine environment.

The Ministry’s decision to ban trawling came within a bundle of measures implemented to protect marine life, such as banning shrimping and catching certain species of fish at different times of the year, allowing them to reproduce.