KOROR (Island Times/Pacnews) — The Palau National Congress or the Olbiil Era Kelulau is again considering legislation to allow foreign fishing within Palau’s Exclusive Economic Zone.
House Bill 11-30-2S, which would amend the Palau National Marine Sanctuary Act, proposes to allow foreign fishing companies to conduct long line and purse seining activities within what is now the no-take zone of the sanctuary for a period of five years.
Citing the global pandemic’s impact on Palau’s economy, the bill states that its implementation “can aid our recovery.”
A similar proposal was introduced in 2019 and was one of the issues during the 2020 presidential election.
In Dec. 2020, then-President-elect Surangel Whipps Jr. said “there is more to gain under the current system — it is about how to maximize our resources to benefit the Palauan people.”
According to the House bill, prior to the closure of the national sanctuary to foreign fishing fleets, “foreign fishing agreements brought significant revenue to the Republic.”
Government financial reports showed that Palau collected about $700,000 from foreign fishing agreements.
Palau currently receives an average of $8 million per year from the Vessel Days Scheme or VDS even though there is no fishing in 80% of Palau’s EEZ.
So far, moreover, Palau has received over $70 million in grants for the implementation of the national sanctuary.
