2.9 



PORTUGAL 



Portugal's high-seas fishing fleet once included many modem, supertrawlers, but the fleet slowly fell into 

 disrepair following the loss of Portugal's African colonies and the extension of 200-mile Exclusive Economic Zones 

 (EEZs) by many countries in the mid-1970s. The high-seas fleet declined from 79 vessels in 1981 to 54 vessels 

 in 1992. Portugal joined the EC in 1986 and this resulted in an infusion of EC funding to help modernize the 

 fishing fleet. The Portuguese fishing fleet currently operates off Canada, the Svalbard Islands (off Norway), the 

 Falkland Islands, Morocco, Mauritania, and Guinea (Bissau) under EC agreements. Portuguese fishing vessels fish 

 off Spain and South Africa under special bilateral agreements with the Government of Spain and under the terms 

 of a bilateral agreement with the Republic of South Africa. Distant-water fishing remains an important source of 

 fish for Portugal's high-seas fleet and the Portuguese could shift their fleet quickly to take advantage of new 

 opportunities. A few Portuguese high-seas vessels could begin fishing off Argentina or Namibia in the near future. 



CONTENTS 



1. General Background 131 



2. Fleet Background 132 



3. Modernization Programs 133 



4. Decommissioning Programs 133 



5. Shipyards 133 



6. International Agreements 133 



7. Fleet Dispersal Plans 134 



Sources 135 



Endnotes 139 



1. General Background 



Portugal has a long tradition of fishing. 

 Portuguese fishermen first appeared off the coast of 

 North America long before the arrival of the Pilgrims 

 in 1620. Fishing, especially for the highly prized 

 Atlantic cod, was long a mainstay of Portugal's 

 fisheries. Local fisheries tend to focus on the 

 harvesting of sardines, using many small purse 

 seines. Many of Portugal's fishing vessels are small, 

 wooden boats that operate out of small harbors. 

 These brightly decorated vessels are attractive, but 

 not very efficient. Nevertheless, Portuguese 



fishermen landed 325,000 tons of fish and shellfish in 

 1991' (see tables 2-3). The 1991 harvest included 

 193,500 tons caught in Portuguese waters and 

 131,500 tons (or 40 percent) taken in international 

 waters (see table 3).' International waters account 

 for between 30 and 40 percent of Portugal's total 

 landings. Portugal's catch in international waters 

 declined from a high of 160,000 tons in 1986 to a 

 low of 85,000 tons in 1989, but has since increased, 

 as vessels displaced from Namibia apparently shifted 

 their operations into the Northwest Atlantic Fisheries 

 Organization (NAFO) area off Canada. 



131 



