Pokmaswas supported the authorities in capturing trawl vessels, July 3, 2024 (Credit score: Ubay)

By: M. Khazali, Guswarman, and Meutia Isty Wulandari 

“If we don’t prioritize monitoring and regulation enforcement in opposition to damaging fishing actions, the blue swimming crab administration is unlikely to succeed.” These phrases have been mentioned in March 2024 by Hasan “Ubay” Ubaidillah, a frontrunner of the Group Surveillance Group (Kelompok Masyarakat Pengawas/Pokmaswas) Jaya Bahari Abadi. He stood within the Lampung Blue Swimming Crab Co-management Crew (TPPRB) assembly, his voice echoing with a way of urgency. This was not a brand new concern for him; he had repeatedly raised this situation since 2022 to the blue swimming crab stakeholders.  

His warning was not unfounded; The Scientific Advisory Group (SAG), a gaggle of scientists and academia, pointed to the prevalence of damaging fishing actions as the principle trigger. Native fishers corroborated this, reporting dwindling catches and shorter fishing seasons. 

Ubay, a frontrunner of Pokmaswas Jaya Bahari

In response to our census in 2019, 1,210 vessels responsibly harvest blue swimming crabs utilizing environmentally pleasant gears (nets and traps) within the jap waters of Lampung. In the meantime, information from the Lampung Provincial Marine and Fisheries Company in 2021 reveals {that a} regarding 914 vessels in the identical location use damaging gears, resembling trawls and domestically modified trawls often called cantrangs, arads, and sondongs. Though these vessels goal a wide range of species, their indiscriminate strategies inevitably influence the blue swimming crab’s important habitat and populations. These practices not solely hurt the setting but in addition end in monetary losses for native fishers, whose nets are sometimes broken or misplaced because of the trawling actions. 

In response, a blue swimming crab fisheries co-management staff was initiated in 2017. Nonetheless, it wasn’t till 2021 that severe efforts to fight unlawful fishing started, with Pokmaswas taking part in a vital function. Pokmaswas, a community-based monitoring group, was tasked to help the federal government in monitoring and reporting any unlawful fishing practices to the authorities. However Pokmaswas‘ function extends far past surveillance. Members of the group function advocates for sustainable fishing practices amongst their fellow fishers, work to empower small-scale fishers, and mediate conflicts throughout the fishing group. Moreover, Pokmaswas can get entry to authorities support, alternatives for capability constructing, and expanded networks to fisheries stakeholders.  

Pokmaswas journey

Pokmaswas’ journey was not with out challenges. It confronted important dangers in every day operations, and its efforts required sturdy help from varied stakeholders, together with the federal government. To handle this, a three-stage stepwise method was carried out, which consisted of consolidation, formation/revitalization, and self-sufficiency. The primary stage concerned gaining recognition and help from authorities, whereas the second stage targeted on establishing or revitalizing Pokmaswas teams in native villages. The ultimate stage aimed to strengthen the capability and self-sufficiency of Pokmaswas’ members to hold out their duties successfully. 

Ubay recalled a narrative when the Lampung Provincial Fisheries and Maritime Affairs Workplace (DKP) and the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries arrested two pairs of trawl vessels throughout the Manner Kambas Marine Protected Space in Lampung on July 3, 2024. This arrest was a results of Pokmaswas’ report back to the authorities, who then took motion to apprehend the offenders. Lengthy earlier than the arrest, DKP and Pokmaswas had intensively reminded trawl fishers to interchange their fishing gear with environmentally pleasant ones since early 2022 by way of a collection of conferences, socialization, signing of integrity pacts, and joint discussions amongst fishers.  

“Hopefully, with the arrest and seizure of the vessel‘s captain for authorized processing, it may possibly function a lesson and create a deterrent impact for different trawl fishers on the east coast of Lampung,” mentioned Ubay. 

As Ubay regarded to the long run, he envisioned a time when the damaging fishing practices would stop, and the blue swimming crab inventory would replenish itself. The most recent Spawning Potential Ratio evaluation, from 17% in 2021 to twenty% in 2023, gave him hope. It was a seemingly small however important step in direction of a extra sustainable future for Lampung’s blue swimming crab fisheries.  

For additional data on blue swimming crab information, learn this weblog.