Socio-economics of the Algarve (south of Portugal) fisheries sector
Pita, C.; Marques, A.; Erzini, K.; Noronha, I.; Houlihan, D.; Dinis, M. T.
Abstract
Portugal has the largest Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) of the European Community and a
fishing sector that has long been a source of income, especially for coastal communities, many of
them being almost totally dependent on fisheries and related activities. The fisheries sector is of great
importance in Portugal, and especially in the Algarve, is characterised by a series of socially and
regionally relevant impacts in some communities as well as being an irreplaceable activity for
maintaining the regional identity and providing incomes for many families.
The Portuguese fisheries are highly diverse, with a significant artisanal component. Two of the
main fishing ports are located in the Algarve (Olhão and Portimão), which is the second most
important region in terms of landings. The most important Algarve fisheries in 2000 were: sardine,
octopus, horse mackerel, chub mackerel and deep water shrimps. The Algarve fishing fleet represents
21% of the Portuguese fleet and this region has the largest number of registered fishermen.
Nevertheless, the number of registered boats and fishermen decreased substantially during the last
decade. This decreasing tendency in direct and indirect employment in the fisheries sector in these
last years is related mainly to the restructuring of the sector, not only in terms of fleet but also of the
industry.
The Algarve total aquaculture production accounts for 49% in quantity and 57% in value of the
total Portuguese aquaculture production, clearly showing that this is the most important region in
Portugal. The Algarve region concentrates the largest number of licensed aquaculture units and also
accounts for the largest area occupied by aquaculture. The Algarve production is dedicated
exclusively to marine species, being the most important region in terms of bottom culture of shellfish
(almost all the Portuguese production) as well as of marine fish, with the main species being seabass,
seabream and to a lesser extent sole.
1. Introduction
Portugal has the largest Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) (approximately 1700000 Km2) of the
European Community (Pinho, 1998). The fishery sector has long been a source of income, especially
for coastal communities, many of them being almost totally dependent on fisheries and related
activities. In Portugal there are almost 30 thousand fishers (and their respective families) and another
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30 thousand persons (and their families) that depend, directly or indirectly, on the fishery sector
(Pinho, 1999).
The Portuguese are big consumers of fish, with fish products representing 14% of food expenses
(Valdez et al., 1994). According to the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) the "per capita"
consumption of fish in Portugal (61.6 Kg/year) is much higher than the European Community mean
of 22.5 Kg/year (Pinho, 1998).
All the above facts show that the fisheries sector is of great importance in Portugal. It is characterised
by a series of socially and regionally relevant impacts in some communities and regions along the
Portuguese coast, being an irreplaceable activity for maintaining the regional identity and providing
incomes for many families (Pinho, 1999).
The Algarve is one of the regions of the Portuguese coast were the fishing activity has a significant
social impact. Sagres, Portimão, Olhão, Fuzeta and Vila Real de Santo Antonio are typical cases of
this impact. Beside these cities and villages there are a big number of smaller communities with
traditions linked to and economic dependence on fisheries or activities associated with fisheries
(Pinho, 1999).
The objective of the present study is to investigate the socio-economic conditions of a fishing
dependent region in the south of Portugal, the Algarve. The chosen site was the small town of Fuzeta
which is an important fishing community and is located near to TIMAR, the largest aquaculture
company (intensive and semi-intensive) in the Algarve.
A brief analysis of the fishing activity in Portugal and more especially in the Algarve is presented. A
structured questionnaire survey and interviews with key personnel are being conducted in the town of
Fuzeta and the Algarve region as part of a study examining the existing socio-economic conditions of
this fishing dependent region.
The Algarve coastline, south of Portugal, extends approximately 160 km from the Guadiana estuary at
the frontier with Spain to Cabo São Vicente in the west. The town of Fuzeta is located in the Ria
Formosa, a 55 km long lagoon in the Algarve, that is a true barrier islands system, comprising
mainland, back barrier lagoons, inlet deltas, barrier islands, barrier platforms and shoreface, covering
a total area of approximately 16,300 hectares (Monteiro 1989; Pilkey et al., 1989) (Figure 1).
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Figure 1. The Algarve coastline, with the main towns and the Ria Formosa.
Aquaculture in the Algarve takes place almost exclusively in the lagoons, of which the Ria Formosa is
by far the largest and most important. Within the Ria Formosa, bivalve culture is a traditional activity
accounting for a significant proportion of the total bivalve production of Portugal. Fish aquaculture is
also an important activity in this area, ranging from the traditional exploitation of naturally stocked
fish in converted salinas or channels that are closed to prevent the escape of juveniles, to semiintensive rearing of fish in earth ponds and intensive rearing in concrete tanks. Besides, the Ria
Formosa is also important for local fisheries, not only in terms of the quantities of fish and
invertebrates captured, but also in terms of the role of the lagoon as a habitat and nursery for
commercially important species.
The Ria Formosa is considered of European importance for biodiversity and therefore was proposed
as a Natura2000 site under the protection of Habitats and Birds Directives. It is also an important bird
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area (IBA) and it is classified as a RAMSAR site for the protection of wetlands. About 90% of the
area is a Natural Park (Ria Formosa Natural Park).
All the above facts illustrate the great importance of the Ria Formosa, both at regional as well as
national levels. Given the fisheries and aquaculture situation in the Algarve, the obvious choice for a
study site is the Ria Formosa and more specifically, the town of Fuzeta.
2. Fisheries
The following is a general review on the Portuguese fisheries sector, with special emphasis on the
Algarve fisheries. The available data in Portugal is territorially aggregated in accordance with the
NUTII territorial classification. In NUTII nomenclature Portugal is divided in five mainland areas
plus two additional regions covering the Madeira and the Azores archipelagos. The Ria Formosa is
included in NUTII "Algarve" and therefore it is only possible to obtain data for the national and
regional levels, and not for the area of study level.
2. 1. Production
The total landings for Portugal, in quantity and value, and by region of the mainland in 2000 are given
in Table 1, while the Portugal and Algarve production for the main species caught in the same period
are shown in Table 2. The Algarve landings for the main gear categories for the last decade (19902000) are given in Figure 2.
In 2000 Portuguese vessels landed over 152 thousand tons of fish. The value of landings in this year
was over 50 billion escudos (over 251 million euros). The Algarve fish production accounted for 26%
in quantity and 30% in value of the Portuguese landings.
Portuguese landings have decreased almost 30%, to 152 thousand tons, between 1990 and 2000. In
the Algarve region landings suffered a smaller oscillations in these last 10 years, with catches
decreasing only 13%.
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Table 1. Portuguese fish production by region in quantity and value, in 2000.
Region
quantity (t) Value (1000 esc)
Norte
26995
6350478
Centro
16551
4143810
Lisboa e V. Tejo
45113
15206422
Alentejo
9368
2317716
Algarve
39321
15134175
Portugal
152188
50434785
Note: frozen, salted and aquaculture not included
Source: INE 2001, Estatistica da Pesca
Value (1000 euros)
31676
20669
75849
11561
75489
251568
Table 2. Portuguese and Algarve main species produced in quantity and value, in 2000.
Portugal
quantity (t) Value (1000 esc)
Freshwater fish
51
70779
Marine fish
134405
37591713
Crustaceans
1813
4781150
Mollucs
15842
7924520
Other aquatic animals
6
27552
Other products
71
39071
Total
152188
50434785
Note: frozen, salted and aquaculture not included
Source: INE 2001, Estatistica da Pesca
Species
Algarve
quantity (t) Value (1000 esc)
5
1708
31045
7522667
1514
4187572
6749
3405577
1
8
16650
39321
15134175
The Portuguese fisheries are highly diverse and the most important fisheries in quantity for the year
2000 were: sardines (over 62700t), horse mackerel (15700t), chub mackerel (11500t) and octopus
(9700t). The main species produced in value were: sardine (36.9 million euros); octopus (26.4 million
euros) and horse mackerel (19.5 million euros).
In the Algarve the main species landed were sardine (19000t), octopus (4600t), horse mackerel
(3000t) and deep water shrimps (1000t). In value the most important species was deep water shrimp
(almost 13 million euros), octopus (almost 12.5 million euros) and sardines (almost 10 million euros).
5
30000
Production (Ton)
25000
Coastal traw lers
20000
Coastal multi-gear
Coastal seine
15000
Others
10000
5000
0
1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000
Years
Figure 2. Annual total fisheries production in the Algarve by coastal trawlers, coastal multigear, coastal seine, and all other gears, 1990-2000 (DGPA, 1991-2001).
According to Datapesca (2001), in 2000, coastal seiners accounted for 52% of the total catch by
weight in the Algarve. The main species landed are small pelagics, especially sardine (Sardina
pilchardus) and horse mackerel (Trachurus trachurus). Coastal multi-gear vessels landed 33% and
coastal trawlers 11% of the total catch by weight.
2. 2. Employment
In Portugal there are almost 30 thousand fishers (and respective families) and another 30 thousand
persons (and their families) that depend, directly or indirectly on the fisheries sector (Pinho, 1999).
The population that is directly connected with the fishery sector is less than 1% of the total employed
population and only about 5% of that employed in the primary sector. However, the Algarve is the
region with the highest percentage of the working population involved in fisheries and aquaculture
related activities. The fishery sector in the Algarve region employs about 3.4% of the total resident
population and over 25% of the population employed in the primary sector. In Olhão, the municipality
where Fuzeta parish is located, the fishery sector represents 21% of the total enterprises of the
municipality, employing 17% of the resident population (CCRAlg, 1998). The Fuzeta community has
a long tradition in the fishery sector, mainly in the long distance fishing fleet. In the 1970s there was
expansion into new fishing areas such as the coast of Morocco, where a large number of vessels
operated until recently, accounting for a large share of the value of the catches landed in the Algarve.
The distribution of registered fishermen by region of the Portuguese mainland coast in 2000 is given
in Table 3.
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Table 3. Registered fishermen by main fishing categories and by region of the mainland and
Portugal, in 2000.
Registered fishermen
Total
Cod
Sardine Trawlers
Norte
6094
406
2404
Centro
2526
330
209
361
Lisboa e V. Tejo
3659
480
1022
Alentejo
733
71
115
Algarve
6539
546
685
Portugal
25021
330
1712
4587
Source: INE 2001, Estatistica da Pesca
Region
Tuna and others
3284
1626
2157
547
5308
18392
The Algarve accounted for 26% of the Portuguese registered fishermen in 2000 and is the region with
more registered fishermen.
The number of registered fishermen shows a decreasing trend over the last years, with a decline of 37
and 35% between 1990 and 2000, for Portugal and the Algarve, respectively. Direct and indirect
employment in the fisheries sector has shown a declining tendency since the beginning of the last
decade, related mainly to the restructuring of the sector, not only in terms of fleet but also of industry.
2. 3. Fleet structure
Fishing is an important activity in the Ria Formosa lagoon itself, with a large number of people taking
part in a variety of activities. According to current legislation, the following gear can be used legally
in the Ria: hook and line (including longlines), jigs, lures, trammel nets, fish traps and push nets.
However, illegal fishing with beam trawls, beach seines and other gear does take place.
The number, tonnage and power of the Portuguese fishing fleet by region of the mainland are given in
Table 4. The Portuguese fleet decreased by 32% to 10750 vessels, from 1990 to 2000, representing a
total tAB of 111691tons, a GT of 118372 and a engine power of 402116kW. The Algarve fleet, the
second most representative fleet, after Lisboa e V. Tejo, with 12% tAB, 11% GT and 18% kW,
accounted for 21% of the Portuguese fleet.
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Table 4. Number, gross tonnage and engine power in kW by region of the mainland coast and
Portugal, in 2000.
Region
nº
Norte
1849
Centro
1217
Lisboa e V. Tejo
3026
Alentejo
249
Algarve
2260
Portugal
10750
Source: INE 2001, Estatistica da Pesca
Registered boats
tAB
GT
19326
19602
28520
34713
30274
31726
1026
937
13792
13529
111691
118372
kW
81320
65305
106717
6560
73781
402116
The Algarve local fleet , accounts for 85% of the total number of registered boats, is composed of
boats less than 9 m in length and which can not fish within ¼ or one mile of the shore, respectively
for open-deck and close-deck vessels. Part of this fleet does not fish year-round, particularly during
the winter. The coastal category accounts for 15% of the total Algarve fleet and consists of boats at
least 9 m in length and which are allowed to fish in depths greater than 20m or in areas at least one
mile from the shore. Four types of coastal category boats are found: “pequena pesca / artes fixas” small-scale / static gear fisheries (42%), “boats =12m” - artisanal (40%), seiners (8%) and trawlers
(10%). The offshore category (<1%) of the fleet consists of only one large fishing vessel.
More than 80% of the Algarve fishing boats belonged to the artisanal or multi-purpose fishing fleet.
The latter boats generally are licensed to fish a number of different gears; in particular longlines, gill
nets, trammel nets, traps and pots. A wide variety of species are fished, mainly at depths between 20
and 100 m and rarely more than 5 miles from the coast. With seasonal availability in abundance of
different resources, these boats alternate fishing gears and fishing grounds.
For the Algarve fleet, 76.2% of licenses were for the local, 23.8% for the coastal and less than 0.1%
for the offshore fleet components. By far the most important port in number of licenses was Portimão
(18.5%), followed by Sagres (12.1%) and Lagos (11%). VRSA, Quarteira and Olhão had around 10%
of licenses and Tavira, Faro, Fuzeta and Albufeira around 7%. The gear with most licenses issued in
the Algarve was the longline with 27.3%, followed by trammel net with 16.9%, gill net with 13.4%
and pots and “covo” traps with nearly 10%.
3. Aquaculture
Aquaculture in Portugal is a relatively old activity, dating back to ancient times. Nevertheless, it was
not until the mid 1980’s, when the Community Structural Policy was applied, that the aquaculture
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industry began to develop. After the application of this policy aquaculture began to be seen as a
complement to the fishing industry and also as an alternative production source of animal protein for
human consumption (Bernardino, 2000).
3. 1. Production
Table 5 presents total, freshwater and marine aquaculture production by region of the Portuguese
mainland, in quantity and value, for the year 1999. The total and marine production for the main fish
and mollusc species, in quantity and value, by aquaculture regime are given in Table 6.
Table 5. Portuguese aquaculture production by region of the mainland, in quantity and value,
in 1999.
Region
Total
quantity (t) Value (1000 esc)
Norte
1081
497296
Centro
1020
1038851
Lisboa e V. Tejo
702
572436
Alentejo
288
372717
Algarve
3097
3444687
Portugal
6280
6027414
Source: INE 2001, Estatistica da Pesca
Freshwater
quantity (t)
1015
220
23
1270
Value (1000 esc)
398675
86862
19282
509534
Marine
quantity (t)
66
800
679
288
3097
5010
Value (1000 esc)
98621
951989
553154
372717
3444687
5517880
In 2000 the Portuguese aquaculture production accounted for over 6 thousand tons, representing in
value over 6 billion escudos (almost 30 million euros). The Algarve fish production accounted for
49% in quantity and 57% in value of the Portuguese aquaculture production, clearly showing that this
region is the most important in terms of aquaculture production.
Total aquaculture production in Portugal increased during the last decade, mainly reflecting the
increase in marine production. The importance of marine production increased significantly (56%)
between 1990 and 1999. Freshwater production decreased 44% during the same period. Overall,
marine fish production shows a marked positive trend while freshwater production shows a downward
decreasing trend. In the last year, 1999, marine production accounted for 80% of the total aquaculture
production in Portugal.
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Table 6. Aquaculture production. Total and marine production for the main fish and mollusc
species produced by aquaculture regime, in quantity and value, in 1999.
Marine
Total
Extensive
Main species
Intensive
Semi-intensive
quantity (t)
Value (1000 esc)
quantity (t)
Value (1000 esc)
quantity (t)
Value (1000 esc)
quantity (t)
Value (1000 esc)
1351
711
1633153
935552
259
90
313386
118845
510
226
616539
297690
582
395
703228
519017
754
247859
754
247859
287
1404
5010
30189
2076778
5517880
287
1404
2915
30189
2076778
2809411
-
-
-
-
Fish
Seabream (Sparus aurata )
Seabass (Dicentrarchus labrax )
Molluscs
Oyster (Crassostrea spp.)
Mussel (Mytilus edulis )
Clam (Ruditapes decussatus )
Total
Source: INE 2001, Estatistica da Pesca
-
-
-
-
1114
1477446
981
1231023
Shellfish production represents the major part of marine production. Nevertheless, fish production
increased in the last years, according to DGPA (1999), mainly due to the increase in the production of
seabream and seabass. The Algarve is the most important region in terms of shellfish production
(almost all the Portuguese production) as well as of marine fish , with the main species being sea bass,
sea bream and to a lesser extent sole.
Within the Ria Formosa, bivalve culture in the inter-tidal zone is a traditional activity accounting for a
significant proportion of the total bivalve production of Portugal. Clam (Ruditapes decussatus)
production in the Ria Formosa has long been a source of sustenance for the local communities as well
as an important source of income (Bernardino, 2000).
3. 2 . Employment
Data on employment is based on the analysis of the aquaculture sector done by Dinis et al. (1999),
since neither the Direcção-Geral das Pescas e Aquicultura (DGPA, National Directorate for Fisheries
and Aquaculture) nor the Instituto Nacional de Estatística (INE, National Statistics Institute) produce
these data. Both these governmental institutes organise data on employment in fisheries including
population employed as inland and coastal waters fishery workers, commercial aquaculture workers,
salt production and fishery labourers, with out any distinction between these categories.
According to Dinis et al. (1999), the number of workers in a fish farm varies according to the
dimension of the enterprise. Small fish farms employ 5 workers, medium dimension fish farms 20 to
25 workers and large farms over 50 workers. Moreover, it is important to note that part-time workers
tend to be more numerous than these full-time effective workers. Although there is no data on
employment in shellfish farms, employment is probably not very high, with most workers being
casual workers with no labour agreement (Dinis et al., 1999).
According to Mendonça et al. (1992), no data is available on the total number of permanent
employees in aquaculture, although it is recognised that the numbers involved in the activity are
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relatively small because a large number of units operate under a family system, particularly in the
case of extensive production of clams and a frequent use of temporary workers, particularly at peak
periods was observed.
3. 3. Structure
The Algarve region accounts for 71% of the total number of aquaculture units and for the largest area
occupied by aquaculture (80%) (INE, 1999). Algarve production is dedicated exclusively to marine
species and the majority is of shellfish production (bottom culture).
Approximately 96% of the aquaculture units located in Algarve are in the Ria Formosa coastal lagoon
and this shows the major importance of the Ria Formosa ecosystem for aquaculture production. In the
Ria Formosa the total occupied area for aquaculture corresponds to 85% of the Algarve aquaculture,
and to 55% of the total occupied area in Portugal (Dinis et al., 1999). Thus, the Ria Formosa is a
major production area, at both regional and national levels.
Aquaculture farms in Ria Formosa are individually or family owned. The only significant exception
is Timar, a large Norwegian company which runs an intensive and semi-intensive farm near Fuzeta,
which will integrate our “narrow sense” site, besides other production units in other regions of
Portugal.
Table 7. Aquaculture units by type of production and production regime in 1999.
Total
nº
Aquaculture type
Shellfish
815
Fishfarm
127
Hatchery
19
Aquaculture regime
Extensive
878
Semi-intensive
47
Intensive
37
Total
962
Source: INE 2001, Estatistica da Pesca
Freshwater
Marine
ha
nº
ha
nº
ha
357
1011
55
13
10
4
11
815
114
9
357
1007
44
878
426
122
1423
1
23
24
15
15
878
46
14
938
878
426
107
1408
In 1999 there were 962 licensed aquaculture units of which 938 were for marine and 24 for freshwater
aquaculture. The majority of the total Portuguese aquaculture units are extensive (91%) and all of
them are marine. The large majority (94%) of the marine units are extensive aquaculture units, while
96% of freshwater units are intensive aquaculture units.
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The total Portuguese aquaculture units are mainly shellfish production units (85%), all of them
marine. Marine units are basically for shellfish farms (87%), while freshwater units are basically fish
farms (54%).
4. References
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Aquicultura. In: http://www.dg-pescas.pt/page8.html
Dinis, M.T.; Moreno, C.; Noronha, I. 1999. Estudo de Caracterização e Diagnóstico do sub-sector da
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sector: Portugal, continente. Commission of the European Communities. Directorate
General for Fisheries. Tecninvest. 61p.
Monteiro, C. 1989. La faune ichtyologique de la Ria Formosa; organisation spatio-temporelle. Thèse
Doctorat, Université de Montpellier, France, 219 pp.
Pinho, A. D. 1998. Pescas Nacionais: Pedaços de uma década perdida. Meribérica/Liber Eds. Lda.
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Pinho, A. 1999. Impactos Sociais e Regionais das Pescas em Portugal. Pp: 33. In Costa, M.; Ruivo,
M.; Costa, J. & Almeida, P. (Eds.). Colóquio Pescas e Ambiente: Uma aliança para o
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Conclusões.
Pilkey, O. H.; Neal, W. J.; Monteiro, J. H.; Dias, J. M., 1989: Algarve barrier islands: a noncoastalplain system in Portugal. J. Coast. Res. 5, 239-261
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Nacionais. Seara Nova, Nº 51, 7p.
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