Bengkulu's Fish Quarantine Confiscates 110 Lobsters

Bengkulu, Jan 28 (Antara) - The Fish Quarantine of Bengkulu Province has confiscated 110 lobsters which would be exported through Fatmawati airport, an official of the quarantine said. The lobsters were confiscated based on Maritime and Fisheries Minister's Regulation No.1/Permen-KP/2015 which bans the catching of lobsters and crabs. Head of the Bengkulu Quarantine Office Dedy Arief Hendra said on Tuesday that based on the regulation, lobsters measuring below 200 grams may not be caught. "We confiscate the 110 lobsters as they have not yet reached the maximal size. Lobsters that can be caught should be over 200 grams. Those with the size less than 50 gram should be let grow in their habitats. If they are caught regardless of their sizes, it will reduce their population," Dedy said. He said that among the 110 lobsters, one was spawning lobster which was also banned from being caught. The government has regulated the catching of lobsters and crabs with Marine Affairs and Fisheries Minister's decision number 1/2015. Marine Affairs and Fisheries Minister Susi Pudjiastuti's decision regulates that lobsters (Panulirus sp) can be caught if the lengths of their carapaces are more than 8 centimeters; crabs (Scylla spp) can be caught if their carapaces are over 15 centimeters long; and rajungans (Portunus pelagicus spp) can be caught if their carapaces are more than 10 centimeters wide. The Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries through its Fish Quarantine Agency (BKIPM) had thwarted attempts to smuggle out spawning lobsters and fly river turtles (Carettochelys insculpta) to Hong Kong and Shanghai, the chief official of the agency stated. "On Saturday (Jan. 24), we confiscated 10 boxes containing 2,350 fly river turtles, which would have been smuggled to Shanghai by a Singapore airline flight from the Soekarno-Hatta Airport," BKIPM Head Narmoko Prasmadji noted. He revealed that on January 16, his office had also foiled an attempt to smuggle three spawning lobsters and 40 small lobsters measuring less than 8 centimeters. The lobsters were to be transported to Hong Kong on a CX-798 aircraft. Prasmadji pointed out that if the turtles had been successfully smuggled out, the state would have incurred losses of some Rp470 million. "We have yet to calculate the total losses the state would have suffered had the lobsters been smuggled out. The lobsters cost Rp700 thousand per kilogram," he added. Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs Indroyono Soesilo supports the decision made by Marine Affairs and Fisheries Minister Susi Pudjiastuti to ban the catching of lobsters and crabs.