San Juanillo Recognized as Marine Area of Responsible Fisheries

By El Sabanero 04/17/13

Photo by Pinar Istek Recently, the Board of the Institute of Fisheries and Aquaculture (INCOPESCA) agreed to declare San Juanillo as a Marine Area of Responsible Fisheries, in order to protect the marine resources of this small community of fishermen. This was announced by Luis Dobles Ramirez, Executive Chairman of INCOPESCA, who said that the area is in the coastal waters off San Juanillo of Cuajiniquil, Santa Cruz, in an area of ??approximately 56.2 square kilometers. "The declaration directly benefits 31 people of the Fishermen's Association of San Juanillo, as well as over 50 fishermen from neighboring communities such as Lagarto, Punta Guiones, Nosara and Playa Pelada. It will also indirectly benefit the area adjacent to the National Wildlife Refuge in Ostional" commented Ramirez Doubles. The agreement was made in a regular session of the Board of INCOPESCA, on February 15, and it states that the Fishermen's Association will coordinate and implement appropriate actions to carry out fishing activities by its members in pursuit of sustainable use of fisheries resources. It also establishes the creation of a Monitoring Committee for the proper management of the area.