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Sources:  http://www.fao.org/fi/website/FIRetrieveAction.do?dom=org&xml=fishcode_prog.xml&nbsp, http://www.fao.org/fi/website/FIRetrieveAction.do?dom=org&xml=CCRF_prog.xml&xp_nav=2, http://www.fao.org/fi/website/FIRetrieveAction.do?dom=org&xml=ipoa_capacity.xml

The Spanish Fishery:

Spain is tied for second in most comsumption of fish per capita (after Japan) with Portugal and Norway (Basurco, 46).

In a PowerPoint presentation given by the Spanish Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries, and Food with data from 2000-2002 on the Spanish fisheries I have found information about the conservation efforts of Spain and the size and scope of their fishing industry. The Minister discusses the location of the Spanish fishing fleet and the relative size of the fleet at each location, as well as the fish output and trade. Spain has also taken measures to offset their substantial impact on the ocean's fish populations by implementing marine reserves, aquaculture, and fishery inspections/satellite tracking (Ministerio de Agricultura, Pesca y Alimentacion \[MAPA\], 2002).

The data show that the Spanish fleet fishes in every major ocean and has over 20 joint ventures with other countries, most of which are in Africa. Also, the overwhelming majority of Spanish fishing vessels have been operating for more than thirty years, and the majority are less than 9 meters in length (so not large boats owned by corporations). Additionally, Spanish ships output nearly one million tons of fish (including crustaceans), cans two hundred and fifty thousand tons, and imports around 5 billion tons per year (a number which far outweighs the amount of fish exported per year) (MAPA, 2002). More than 75,000 Spaniards are employed in the fishing an aquaculture industries (EarthTrends).

Their efforts to preserve the oceans are as follows: the Ministry runs five of the eighteen marine reserves off the coast of Spain (though according to EarthTrends, Spain has 34 marine reserves), and produces around 300,000 tons in fish (including mollusks, fish, and crustaceans) from aquaculture, most of which is marine based (approx. 10% is land-based) (MAPA, 2002). Spain has "As in many other parts of Europe, in Spain , aquaculture and particularly that of salt water species, is nowadays perceived as the only means to preserve the present equilibrium between supply and
demand of fish products for human consumption" (Bascrco, 45). "In Europe, 80% of the supply of sea bass and sea bream is now provided by the aquaculture sector" produced in more than 90 hatcheries in 15 countries (Basurco, 46).

A center run by the MAPA is also tracking approx. 1,700 fishing vessels with portable on board "Blue Box" units. The government also employs GPS to track vessels (MAPA, 2002).

I also found an extremely useful report issued by CIHEAM, the Centre International des Hautes Etudes Agronomiques Mediterraneennes (The International Center for Advanced Mediterranean Agronomic Studies), which discusses the use of aquaculture and Europe. According to the periodical, "In Europe, 80% of the supply of sea bass and sea bream is now provided by the aquaculture sector" produced in more than 90 hatcheries in 15 countries The fishing industry is an extremely component of both the culture and the economy in Spain. More than 75,000 Spanairds are employed in the fishing an aquaculture industries, and twelve percent of the total protein intake in Spain is fish. Spain is tied for second in most comsumption of fish per capita (after Japan) with Portugal and Norway (Basurco, 46).

SOURCES:

Basurco, B., & Larrazabal, G. (2000). "Marine fish farming in Spain." CIHEAM--Options Mediterraneennes, 30, 45-56.

EarthTrends: Country Profiles: Coastal and Marine Ecosystems—SpainEcosystems---Spain. Retrieved November 7, 2007, from University of Washington, Fisheries-Oceanography Library Web Site: http://www.lib.washington.edu/fish/subjects/fishstat.html#international^{Image Removed}

Ministerio de Agricultura, Pesca y Alimentacion. (2002). Fisheries in Spain. Madrid, Spain: Jose Ortega.

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