Govt one month ban on octopus fishing

A temporary ban on octopus fishing will be implemented as from this Saturday inside British Gibraltar Territorial Waters. The ban which will run from April 15 to May 15 inclusive forms part of the continued efforts to manage the population of common octopus by the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Climate Change.
The aim is to improve the breeding success at this time of year and to protect octopus when they are laying eggs.
The measure, said Government statement, had been discussed and agreed within the Fishing Working Group set up under the Marine Protection Regulations (2014). All fishing associations are represented in this group.
“Temporary bans are one of the most effective measures used to sustainably manage fish stocks. Similar bans are regularly implemented throughout the Mediterranean although this is the first time it is being applied in Gibraltar as part of the Government's wider marine protection programme,” said a Government spokesperson.
This measure will build on the introduction in 2014 of a minimum weight of 1.5 kilograms for Octopus caught in BGTW, and is expected to result in an increased number and size of Octopus found in Gibraltar’s coastal waters in this and future years, added the statement.