The Civil Guard acts against illegal eels platforms on the Guadalquivir river
18 complaints have been made and 16 fishing gears of the so-called "iron arms" have been disabled
23 nets have been seized to catch shrimp, 8 eel nets, 3 eel pots and 2 trammel nets
This illegal activity represents a serious threat to life, biodiversity, legal and regulated fishing, traffic and the safety of navigation at the mouth of the Guadalquivir river.
The Civil Guard has carried out the second phase of the "AVE FÉNIX" operation, to prevent the reactivation of illegal activity at the mouth of the Guadalquivir river, which represents a serious threat to life, biodiversity, legal and regulated fishing, traffic and safety of navigation and sometimes encourages drug trafficking.
The illegal activity of these eel artifacts is carried out in a fishing reserve, declared a very sensitive biological and ecological zone, called the Bajo Guadalquivir breeding and fattening zone. Eel fishing is totally prohibited in the rivers and coastal waters of Andalusia, as an exceptional measure for the recovery of the European eel.
The presence in the river of these devices represents a danger to maritime safety and hinders navigation, in an area of the narrow river, with little draft and sinuous lines, sometimes occupying the navigation channel in both directions to Seville .
These platforms used in some cases by criminal groups linked to drug trafficking, represent a serious risk for the FCSE, in its work to prevent illegal drug trafficking, the control and surveillance of this maritime route.
Commercial activity of extermination fishing
This commercial activity of extermination fishing, which is neither recreational nor cultural nor for subsistence, uses nets of 1mm mesh size, so that all the species that cohabit with the eel fall into this fishing gear, which has a particularly destructive efficacy for life in rivers. This work is carried out regardless of any current legislation, acting with total impunity in the face of any administrative sanction or civil liability that its devices may cause, since all of its assets and wealth are in the name of third parties.
The operation has been directed and developed by agents of the Civil Guard of the Cádiz Commandery with the collaboration of officials from the Fisheries Inspectorate of the Andalusian Government and officials from the Maritime Captaincy of Seville.
