Topic: Protecting International Fisheries
Country: Spain
Delegate Name: Alex Calderwood
School: Roeper School
Topic page: background guide and all position papers All Spain position papers GLIMUN 2017 committees
As the European Union’s biggest fisher, Spain has a lot of say in this problem. Spain produces 1.3 million tons of fish per year, 70% of it being from sea fishing, and the rest from farm fishing. It is important to note, however, that the amount of fish Spain farms- 290 thousand tons in 2015- has increased by 30% since 2013 and is looking to continue that trend. Spain’s farm fishing (aquaculture) output is also the highest in Europe. Spain’s fishing fleet contains nearly 10,000 ships, but that number has stayed stagnant for years. Since the year 2000, Spain has received 8 billion USD in European Union subsidies to fund its fishing program. Spain recognizes the problems that the committee has presented, which are: The difficulty in monitoring fish populations, the harms that bycatch causes, and the mass fishing’s environmental damage; however, The Kingdom of Spain would like to work to solve these problems in a way that does not greatly impede the production of the fishing industry, as it serves as a critical part of Spain’s economy. Spain, one of the vast majority of nations not involved in whaling, condemns the few nations that continued this environmentally barbarous practice.
To start, Spain suggests that the current amount of checks and monitoring of commercial fishing is sufficient and need not change in the immediate future. To have the United Nations check the catch rates of independent fishing companies would be an imposition on national and economic sovereignty. However, with fishery yields continuing to plummet, we believe a broad-based environmental impact study of global fisheries must be initiated. Pending its report, Spain (and other nations) may need to reconsider their policies.
A reason as to why the fishing industry should not be impeded is that it is central to the economy in many regions. For instance, fishing is the primary sector in the region of Galicia, and to restrict the fishing industry there would cripple its economy and send many of its citizens into poverty. If fishing regulations are to be implemented, the Kingdom of Spain would suggest incentivizing governments to give subsidies to aquaculture. Aquaculture represents an efficient method for the production of fish in the future that is both environmentally friendly and prevents illicit activity.
With all this in mind, the Kingdom of Spain looks forward to working with all other nations in finding a solution to this problem.
