Regional Government warns of serious impacts of RAMPA declassification - Communication

Secretaria Regional do Mar e das Pescas

The Regional Government of the Azores, through the Regional Secretariat for the Sea and Fisheries, reiterates its opposition to the Draft Regional Legislative Decree providing for the third amendment to Regional Legislative Decree No. 28/2011/A of November 11. The latter structures the Azores Marine Park and intends to allow pole and line fishing in Marine Protected Areas under full protection. In this regard, the Government warns of the serious reputational, financial, environmental and legal impacts that the approval of this decree may entail.

The Regional Secretary for the Sea and Fisheries, Mário Rui Pinho, recalled that the revision of the Azores Marine Protected Areas Network (RAMPA), led by the Regional Government, was a solid process that spanned five years. It was based on science and the co-creation of solutions, through an extensive participatory process that complies with the criteria established by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

It should be noted that Regional Legislative Decree No. 14/2024/A of December 24 , which establishes the protection of 30% of the waters of the Azores archipelago, already allows pole-and-line fishing for tuna in high protection Marine Protected Areas, which constitute about half of the area of the Azores Marine Park.

With this commitment and the approval of the law creating RAMPA, the Azores "have been widely recognised as an international benchmark and leaders by example in marine conservation," defended Mário Rui Pinho. He also pointed out that RAMPA has been studied internationally as a reference model, with potential for similar application in other regions.

This example of leadership has prompted financial support from the National Government, through the Environmental Fund, recently authorised by the Council of Ministers on October 30, amounting to €10 million, for a mechanism to compensate for the decline in fishing activity, which is intended to support the transition to a more sustainable activity. The study for the implementation of this mechanism is being finalised by the universities of the Azores and the Algarve, with the participation of the Azores fishing associations.

Moreover, the Region now benefits from an implementation fund, provided for in the new memorandum of understanding for the Blue Azores programme, signed in February this year. The commitment of the programme partners establishes support for the Region, with an investment of at least $10.4 million, to ensure the full implementation of RAMPA. This fund intends to support RAMPA management measures, fisheries restructuring, surveillance, monitoring and sustainable financing during the implementation period and until 2029.

However, the government official stressed that the declassification of RAMPA could jeopardise these two sources of funding, which total €20 million.

Authorising fishing within Marine Nature Reserves would not only compromise the conservation goals defined for these areas, but would also be incompatible with the scientific and legal criteria underpinning their designation. This would lead to their declassification and, consequently, to a reduction in the Region's full protection percentage to 0%.

If RAMPA is declassified, the Azores and Portugal will not meet the national, European and international 30 by 30 targets. This situation will greatly jeopardise the Region's reputation, its ability to manage its sea, and the aforementioned sources of funding, or any other future sources necessary for the implementation of the network and the restructuring of the fisheries sector.

It is important to note that the main beneficiaries of the compensation mechanism are vessels engaged in other types of fishing, which will continue to be potentially impacted by the new network and whose funding is now threatened by the current proposed amendment.

“In addition to causing significant damage to the international reputation of the Autonomous Region of the Azores, there are no scientific, economic or social reasons to justify this initiative. This proposed legislative amendment is based on the principle that pole and line fishing has no negative impact on ecosystems, claiming that, due to its selectivity, this activity even contributes to the conservation of marine species. Nevertheless, there are no scientific or technical bases to support this claim, nor could there be, given that they are contrary to existing scientific information," continued Mário Rui Pinho.

It should also be noted that the proposed amendment may be unconstitutional and could further weaken the institutional position of the Azores in shared management of the sea, with legal and political repercussions at a national and international level.

The Regional Secretariat for the Sea and Fisheries reiterates its commitment to economic and ecological sustainability. It calls for a responsible decision to preserve the future of the Azores sea and the leading position of the Region in implementing marine conservation, and as an example of ocean governance, combining science, public participation, the blue economy and climate action.