APPEAL
Purse Seiner

A Spanish purse seine netter was looking for Bluefin off south Donegal on 1
October and was off Downings on 2 October. Ireland has no quota for Bluefin
and it would be illegal for this vessel to net within 12 miles of the coast.

The presence of this vessel is a concern for stocks - Ireland is the only
country in Europe which is an effective "santuary" for Bluefin - even though
it is only to the 12 mile limit.

All readers of this notice are asked to write to:

The Minister of the Marine
Dail Eireann
Dublin
Ireland

Please ask that Ireland declares a 200 mile exclusion zone for Bluefin.

The Seiner was spotted exactly 12 miles off the coast - not sure what he
intended to do if he spotted Bluefin 1 or 2 miles inside him!!!

It is now beleived that this purse seiner will be back in 2004 with all the
licenses etc. he needs. If he has a sucessful season in 2004, then 2005 will
probably be the last reasonable Tuna season for anglers, and the first
season when a number of seioners shall work the Donegal coast. Anglers
probably only have the winter/spring to make their voices heard.