Ecuador on alert more than huge Chinese fishing fleet
Ecuador is on alert as a result of appearance of a huge fleet of mostly Chinese-flagged fishing vessels off it is Galapagos Islands.
Patrols are trying to ensure the fleet - which comprises of around 260 vessels - does not enter the delicate eco-program from international waters.
Chinese vessels happen to be the region every year in search of marine species.
In 2017, a Chinese vessel was caught in the marine reserve with 300 tonnes of wildlife, almost all of it sharks.
"We will be on alert, [conducting] surveillance, patrolling to avoid an incident such as what happened in 2017," Ecuadorean Defence Minister Oswaldo Jarrin advised reporters.
There was no immediate comment from the Chinese authorities when contacted by BBC News.
The ex-mayor of Quito, Roque Sevilla, told The Guardian a "protection strategy" was being designed for the hawaiian islands.
"Unchecked Chinese fishing only over the edge of the protected area is ruining Ecuador's attempts to protect marine lifestyle in the Galápagos," he said.
President Lenin Moreno features said that Ecuador will carry consultations with additional Latin American countries with a good coastline about the Pacific - Colombia, Peru, Chile, Panama and Costa Rica - as a way to form a good joint regional position concerning the "threat".
"Due to that [natural] wealth for the reason that area, we undergo immense pressure from overseas angling fleets," he was reported as saying on El Universo newspaper.
The Galapagos Marine Reserve boasts many shark species, including endangered whale and hammerheads.
The Galapagos Islands certainly are a Unesco Environment Heritage site renowned worldwide because of their unique array of plants and wildlife.
Charles Darwin made observations critical to his theory of evolution on the islands.
