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View all search resultsLooking ahead: I Made Eka Putra, head of a Sanur fishermenâs group, warns that fishermen need education on sustainable practices to ensure a future for their industry
span class="caption">Looking ahead: I Made Eka Putra, head of a Sanur fishermen's group, warns that fishermen need education on sustainable practices to ensure a future for their industry.
Bits of pink, blue and white plastics lay part buried in the mud-flats that make up the shore of an international yacht-mooring lagoon on Serangan Island, south of Sanur beach.
This rainbow of pollution that has washed into the seas surrounding Bali from rivers and rubbish dumps is one of the many issues facing Indonesia's fishing industry in the future, says Saut Hutagalung, director general for fisheries production, processing and marketing at the Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Ministry.
'This is solid waste coming from household waste, industry and city dumping,' says Saut, stressing that Indonesia's fishing industry needs to deal with the issue 'in an integrated manner with the local government, including campaigns in families, the public, schools'.
He was speaking on the many issues threatening the country's fishing industry and solutions being implemented, such as the phasing out of trawler fishing, during an adult lobster release at Serangan Island last Friday.
The event was aimed at increasing local understanding of why breeding adult lobsters and other breeding sea creatures must be protected and left to breed in the seas.
'This morning we are very happy that a company official here in Bali reported to our officers that his company had 27 pearl lobsters weighing 1.5 kilograms each.
'That is Rp 1.5 million each ' a lot of money. He was clued up environmentally, he said they had eggs,' says Saut of female lobsters that may attract a high return on sale, but a much greater return if left in the sea to spawn their eggs.
'We have to show to the fisherman that if we leave these adults to grow to breed in the sea, we can catch more later on, within four to five months. One lobster lays millions of eggs. If 10 percent grow and live, we can get even more.'
The message from the ministry is reaching its target audience. On a corner of the narrow track circling Serangan Island, Ibu Norma is dry baking and partially smoking skewered baswal and tuna fish she bought at the local fish market earlier in the day.
Glistening golden from a turmeric wash and wrapped in whorls of coconut husk smoke, Norma says the 50 kg of fish she prepares daily will be sold in Denpasar's Badung market.
'These are caught off Nusa Dua. My husband fishes, but he dives and uses a harpoon. We know from Ibu Susi that we may only catch the big fish,' says Norma, referring to Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Minister Susi Pudjiastuti.
Her friend, 29-year-old Rika, who was nursing her child while visiting Norma, says it's tough to be banned from catching small fish.
'It's not good because there are a lot of small fish and we could eat them, but now I am scared if I catch small fish, the police will get me. I do agree that we need to let the small fish grow, I just don't agree we should be arrested if we catch them,' says Rika, adding that her only information on changes and proposed changes to fishing laws comes from television. 'We've had no official message that we must not catch small fish, we only know from TV.'
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