Do trawling bans work in tropical waters?

Abstract

The biological effect of fishing bans in tropical waters is considered. In the Philippines, the Samar Sea was closed to trawlers in November 1976; a fishery survey was carried out to monitor possible changes in the fish stocks. In spite of the ongoing activities of a few small trawlers, the biomass of fish in the Samar Sea increased constantly during the survey period. Thus, it is concluded that the imposition of a trawling ban is a suitable tool in tropical waters to protect the vital interests of the sustenance fishery by helping heavily exploited fish stocks to recover.