seafood for over a thousand years, are not suited for 

 high yields. Greek fisheries traditionally are the 

 source of a modest livelihood for many thousands of 

 small boat owners, but not for large fishing vessels. 

 The fishing industry contributes less than 2 percent of 

 the Gross Agricultural Product of the nation and is 

 not expected to expand in the future.^ Despite natural 

 limitations and an aging fleet of small vessels, the 

 Greek catch has increased from 100,000 tons in 1983 

 to 165,500 tons in 1992.' Some of this growth 

 might be attributed to the modernization of the high- 

 seas or distant-water fishing fleet in recent years. 

 Greece continues to rely on imports to meet the 

 seafood requirements of its people. Greek fishery 

 imports were 58,400 tons worth $218 million versus 

 exports of 22,100 tons worth $147 million in 1992." 

 An overview of the Greek fishing industry can be 

 seen in tables 1-3. 



The Greek fleet has some fairly large vessels. In 

 1976, for example, the fleet included 21 vessels 

 (13,808-GRT) in the 500- to 999-GRT range, 10 

 vessels (12,210-GRT) in the 1,000- to 1, 999-GRT 

 range, and 2 vessels (6,412-GRT) over 2,000-GRT. 

 This fleet operated in both the industrial and offshore 

 fisheries.' It was reported that some Greek vessels 

 were fishing for pilchard, anchovy, horse mackerel, 

 and hake off Argentina in 1977.'" The increase in 

 the size of the fleet since 1987 includes the addition 

 of several vessels over 2,000-GRT (table 1). In 

 1992, the high-seas fleet included 17 vessels, 

 including 4 vessels over 2,000-GRT. Some of these 

 vessels had fished off the Falkland Islands from 1987 

 to 1990 averaging less than 5,000 tons aimually (table 

 3 and appendix 29-31). 



3. Modernization Programs 



2. Fleet Background 



The Greek "distant-water"'' fishing fleet went 

 from 13 vessels catching 12,000 tons in 1961 to a 

 high of 65 vessels catching 33,700 tons in 1971. The 

 fleet declined abruptly from 68 vessels landing 

 21,000 tons in 1976 to 48 vessels harvesting 26,500 

 tons in 1977 to 46 vessels catching 19,000 tons in 

 1978. The distant-water fleet declined further to 31 

 vessels catching 13,500 tons in 1982 shortly after the 

 country joined the European Community.' The 

 distant-water fleet reportedly reached 48 vessels in 

 1987.' Since then the distant-water fleet has grown 

 to 82 vessels catching 16,000 tons in 1991.' 



1975 1980 1985 1990 92 



■Vessels over 500-GRT ■••Tonnage 



Figure 1. Greece's high-seas fleet, 1975-92. 



The Greek government has spent relatively 

 modest sums of money to modernize the nation's 

 fishing fleet. Many of the vessels in the Greek 

 fishing fleet are outdated and programs to alter this 

 situation were quite modest prior to Greece joining 

 the EC in 1981." In 1991, the Greek Ministry of 

 Agriculture spent $98,000 on the replacement or 

 modernization of fishing vessels, which again is a 

 small sum when one considers that the Greek fleet 

 included approximately 21,000 vessels in 1991. 



4. Decommissioning Programs 



Greece is required to reduce the size of its 

 fishing fleet in accordance with the EC Multi-Annual 

 Guidance Program for Fisheries (EEC Regulation 

 4028/86). No new commercial fishing licenses have 

 been issued since 1988, except as a replacement for 

 vessels of similar capacity and engine size. This 

 prohibition is in accordance with Greek Regulation 

 (Presidential Decree 261/91). In 1991, Greece spent 

 $2.9 million on the withdrawal of fishing vessels 

 (under EEC Regulation 4028/86), and $111,000 for 

 the withdrawal of beach seiners under 12 meters in 

 length under the Integrated Mediterranean Program. 

 The Greek decommissioning program in 1991 was 

 aimed at reducing the size of the coastal fishing fleet. 

 A total of 123 vessels were decommissioned in 1991. 

 The only high-seas vessel decommissioned according 

 to EC directives that the authors have found is the 

 Xifias, a 695-GRT vessel built in 1947 and sold to a 

 third country on November 18, 1988.'^ 



92 



