The marine protected area of the Apulian municipality will award a prize of one hundred euros for every turtle saved and handed over to rescuers. It is the first case in Italy.
It is estimated that every year in the Mediterranean, commercial fishing causes the "accidental" capture of over 130,000 specimens of Caretta caretta, a priority species listed in the Habitats Directive and classified as "vulnerable" on the Iucn Red List. Of these sea turtles, around 50,000 are caught in Italian waters, taking bait from hooks or becoming entangled in nets, and around 10,000 do not survive capture.
In an effort to reduce the mortality of these fascinating and increasingly rare marine reptiles, the Porto Cesareo marine protected area (Amp), in the province of Lecce on the Ionian coast, has established a rescue fund for fishermen who save sea turtles. The management consortium of the protected area has decided — a first in Italy — to include in its budget "a special support fund for fishermen who, having rescued a turtle and delivered it alive to the designated rescuers, submit a request for the contribution."
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The annual sum set aside for the initiative is one thousand euros, and for every sea turtle saved and handed over to rescuers, each boat skipper will receive a contribution of one hundred euros. These are not particularly large sums, but they nonetheless represent an important incentive to encourage the protection of these animals, which are increasingly threatened by human impact.
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"With the aim of saving as many sea turtles as possible, it is deemed appropriate to incentivise and reward fishermen who, while operating in the Porto Cesareo marine protected area, choose to rescue turtles in distress, forgoing the day's earnings," commented Remì Calasso, president of the management consortium of the Amp Porto Cesareo.
Professional fishermen who recover a sea turtle must immediately notify the operators of the protected area, who will take charge of the animal and provide the necessary care. The recovered turtle, the Amp specified in a press release, "must be kept on board the fishing vessel with only the carapace covered by means of a damp cloth. Should the specimen instead have become entangled in fixed nets, it must be freed while keeping any further trauma to a minimum. In the event that the specimen has taken a hook, no attempt should be made to remove it."