The PIPO centres, located in 22 coastal provinces, monitor fishing vessels as part of the government's attempts to combat IUU fishing. It was found that of the 17 documents fishing operators are required to submit to PIPO centres, 10 are already filed on the PIPO database. Gen Chatchai said this will help the operations of fishing vessels that comply with the regulations without compromising the ability of officials to conduct checks. The Marine Department also has been assigned to verify the number of fishing vessels and their status within three months. According to Gen Chatchai, some 766 fishing boats are currently impounded due to IUU-related regulations, but the government needs an updated fishing fleet database.

Source: Bangkok Post May 11, 2018 01:07 UTC