TOUGH MEASURES IMPOSED FOR HARVESTING SEA CUCUMBER
An example of dried beche-de-mer. Photo credit: Solomon Times.
The Ministry of Fisheries has imposed tough measures over methods of harvesting beche-der-mer with its recent announcement to lift the ban for three months.
The Government has lifted the ban from the first of this month to harvest and sell the marine commodity.
While this is a welcome news to many rural communities, the Ministry of Fisheries Office has imposed tough measures over methods of harvesting the sea cucumber as control measures to sustain the marine product.
A statement by the Ministry explained that handpicking, free diving, and wading are the qualified methods adding harvesting must be done during day time and not during night time as widely practiced in the past.
It has warned that other methods of harvesting are prohibited as stated under the Solomon Islands National Sea Cucumber Fishery
Management and Development plans.
The Ministry of Fisheries warns local communities to be more responsible when harvesting the highly valued marine cucumber