Morocco seizes 74 tons of juvenile sardines

Moroccan fishing authorities have seized lately 74 tons of juvenile sardines in the southern Atlantic port of Laayoune.

The seizure was operated in line with the decision made last May by Morocco to preserve the country's dwindling fishery resources.

Morocco has decided to ban sardine fishing in its southern shores between Dakhla and Boujdour, for a renewable 1-year period, to protect endangered sardine stocks.

The decision was unanimously backed by fishery professionals and the specialized committees of the parliament.

Moroccan sardine stocks are currently prey to a significant ecological threat, as the stocks were depleted to alarming levels between 1986 and 1996.