The association Salvem sa Badia has made a statement of complaint that at least 18 large tuna fishing vessels, fishing in recent days in Ibizan waters, have anchored in the Posidonia meadow of Sant Antoni de Portmany.
The group points out that, judging by the boats’ actual position as captured by satellite compared with the mapping of posidonia by the Balearic Government, “many of them have dropped anchor in the Posidonia meadow located in front of the ses Variades, Caló des Moro and es Cap Blanc areas”.
They also indicate that the position of the tuna vessels, which carry Italian, French and Spanish flags, has been determined using the AIS system, which allows vessels to communicate their position and other relevant information so that other vessels or stations are aware of their position and can avoid collisions.
Salvem sa Badia points out that a year ago, at around the same time, several environmental organisations complained that many of these vessels had already anchored in the Posidonia meadow in the Bay of Porroig and also warned of possible spills from these tuna boats.
The association is confident that these vessels will be “observed and controlled, both by the maritime and fishing administrations and especially by the environmental authority”.