ISTANBUL
A purse seine boat hauls in its net in Istanbul’s Bosphorus. (DHA Photo)
Shore anglers and fishing crews are disputing whether purse seine boats violate a 24-meter minimum fishing depth in Istanbul’s Bosphorus, with anglers alleging damage to breeding grounds and crews insisting they operate legally.
The dispute centers on boats casting nets near the shore off Istanbul’s Sarıyer district. Anglers say the nets catch juvenile fish and obstruct migration into the Marmara Sea, while boat operators say proximity to land does not mean the water is shallow.
“They cast their nets so close we could touch their buoys with our fishing rods,” angler Mustafa Arslan said. He said boats lined both sides of the strait during the bonito season, preventing fish from reaching the Marmara Sea and threatening populations.
Angler Orhan Cebeci said boats damaged breeding grounds and caught small fish before emptying their nets, wasting tons of fish. He alleged 15 to 20 boats cast nets in succession around the clock, violating rules since the season began.
Cebeci said complaints to the municipal help desk drew the response that crews were conducting training exercises.
Boat owner Adem Mermer rejected the claims, saying the waters where crews cast nets were open to fishing and sufficiently deep. He said crews avoided shipping routes and did not obstruct vessels.
Mermer put fishing depths at 60 to 70 meters, or 30 to 40 fathoms, and local waters at 20 to 30 fathoms. “These waters are not shallow just because they are near the shore,” he said.
Mermer said his boat employed 34 people and targeted passing fish such as bonito and young bluefish. Horse mackerel remained locally and could be caught later in the Marmara Sea, he said.
He said fishermen could use half the Marmara Sea but actually fished in 20 to 30 percent because fish were not everywhere. Boats were impounded after a third violation, he said, urging fishermen to organize and set quotas.
Crew member Ali Şükrü Karadeniz said Coast Guard monitoring and onboard equipment showed where nets were cast. He said compliance averted heavy penalties and protected future catches.
“Wrong fishing practices deplete fish stocks,” Karadeniz said. Another crew member said they generally worked in waters 40 to 50 meters deep and observed minimum fish-size rules.
Türkiye’s commercial fishing rules restrict purse seine operations by water depth as well as season, with a 24-meter minimum outside the Black Sea, subject to specified exceptions.