On Wednesday morning began a trial that could further reveal the inability of the Costa Rican State to manage the fishing resource, which belongs to all Costa Rican people. The trial in the Contentious Administrative Court was initiated by legislator Jose Maria Villalta against the Government and the Costa Rican Institute of Fishing and Aquaculture (Incopesca).
The congressman from Frente Amplio denounced the actions and “illegal omissions” of the governments in the regulation and protection of the national tuna resource. For decades the country has “given away” this valuable tuna resource, caught in national waters, to the international fleet, which takes most of the product.
According to a study conducted by the Costa Rican Fisheries Federation (Fecop) based on official data from the International Tropical Tuna Commission (CIAT), between 2008 and 2011 Costa Rica received an average income of $37 per ton of tuna extracted as payment of tuna license fees.
But in the international market, every ton of tuna that is processed as a canned product has a price of $2,800. “If that ton is sold as a fresh product it can be worth between $6,000 and $10,000,” explained Villalta.
The problem for this country is that foreign ships fish so much more than the national fleet, which receives less income, since only 5% of the tuna is left for it.
Since March 2017, after an investigation, the MarViva Foundation concluded that in the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) of Costa Rica, an average of 25 thousand metric tons of tuna are caught. Of these, only 7,500 tons are landed for use in the tuna canning industry in national ports. The rest is taken to other countries.
Before the start of the trial, Frente Amplio recalled that there is an absence of technical studies from Incopesca to direct the regulation of the fishing resource. There are also gates that allow the granting of fishing licenses to individuals.
Villalta also requests that the authorities meet the technical criteria of the IATTC regarding the use of the cubic meter as a measure of volume and that it recognizes the real value of the exploited marine-fishing resources that are part of the National Heritage.