Playas del Coco, Guanacaste, Costa Rica: Guanacaste tourism operators and artisanal fishermen and women sent a letter today to the Legislative Assembly’s environmental commission, calling on its members to vote against bill N° 19,838, known as the Sustainable Shrimp Trawling Bill, saying it will jeopardize the socio-economic livelihoods of thousands of Guanacaste families. The letter was signed by 39 concerned business operators and small scale fishers representing the interests of hundreds of individuals employed in both sectors, with copies sent to the Ministers of Agriculture, Environment, and Tourism.

The letter referred to the environmental commission’s Constitutional Court mandate Nº 2013010540, that banned shrimp trawling in 2013 (to be phased out by 2019) because of its impact on the country’s “democratic sustainable development,” and explains how the number of unsatisfied tourists is growing because they are not experiencing the beauty and abundance of marine life and the plentitude of fish they expected to experience in Costa Rica.

“What should we tell guests when another shrimp trawler is seen in the area and dead sea turtles begin washing up on the beach?” ask the signees to the country’s legislators. “The government’s insistence on continuing shrimp trawling activities after the phase-out is complete in 2019 not only tarnishes the country’s reputation as a top ecotourist destination, it threatens the integrity of coastal resources that support sustainable tourism and artisanal fishing,” denounced the group.

“The ministers of agriculture and environment have put a lot of work into this so called ‘sustainable’ shrimp trawl bill, three years in fact, in total disregard to scientific facts and the mandate of the constitutional court,” lamented Costa Rican biologist Randall Arauz, an expert with the Colorado-based marine research and conservation organization FinsAttached.org. “Does the Minister of Tourism believe shrimp trawling serves the best interests of the tourism sector that he is supposed to represent, support and foster?” asked Arauz.

Meanwhile, Thursday hundreds of fishermen will meet outside the Legislative Assembly to express their  opposition to the bill as well. The march will be attended by fishermen from Puntarenas, Guanacaste, Gulf of Nicoya, South Pacific, and with the support of the environmental sector and other concerned citizens.

The objective of the peaceful demonstration will be to request the legislators shelve this project that seeks to reinstate trawling in Costa Rica, as it lacks scientific support, and fails to address the socio-economic conflict between the shrimp sector and the artisanal sector.

In August 2013, the Constitutional Chamber, in its sentence 2013-10549, ordered the Costa Rican Institute of Fisheries and Aquaculture (INCOPESCA) not to issue new licenses for this technique, nor to renew existing licenses, but the government continues to promote re-licensing.

In October 2016, the School of Economics of the National University (UNA) presented a socioeconomic study of the semi-industrial shrimp trawling sector in which it showed that the practice only generates 590 direct jobs, of which 80 percent are of poor quality, and below minimum wage. Shrimp peelers earn on average 37 times less than license owners.

On the other hand, according to the study, the artisanal fishing sector represents 15,000 jobs, and trawling affects the resources upon which these workers depend.

“Allowing trawling is tantamount to cutting down a forest, devastating all resources for this and future generations. The state must promote productive alternatives to support the fishing sector, train the sector to generate these new productive projects and support them with seed capital for the initial investment,” said Haydee Rodríguez, manager of Political Advocacy, MarViva Foundation.