The Government approves the professional fishing plan for Pollença and Alcúdia

The Governing Council has approved Decree 32/2026, of October 2, which establishes a management plan for professional fishing in the inland waters of the bays of Pollença and Alcúdia and modifies two current decrees. The regulation is published in the Official Gazette of the Balearic Islands (BOIB) no. 126, of October 6, 2026, and enters into force the day after its publication.

The text, signed by President Margarita Prohens Rigo and the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Natural Environment, Joan Simonet Pons, responds to the proposal that the fishermen’s guilds of Pollença, Alcúdia, and Cala Rajada presented to the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Natural Environment in the spring of 2024, inspired by the plan for the inland waters of the Pityusic Islands (Decree 15/2022, of May 16).

The scope of application comprises the inland waters of the two bays, delimited by the straight baseline between Cap de Formentor and Cap del Freu established in Royal Decree 2510/1977, of August 5. The stated objective is to maintain the activity, the number of vessels, production, and jobs of the professional fleet, combining this with a reduction in authorized fishing effort.

A census of 80 vessels and fewer fishing days

The decree creates a census of authorized vessels, limited to a maximum of 80 vessels, which will be established by resolution of the Director General of Fisheries and updated in the first quarter of each year. For the small-scale gear modality, the requirements are:

• Not exceeding 12 meters in length.
• Having a tonnage less than or equal to 10 GT.
• Having a power output less than or equal to 120.0 kW.

Regarding fishing effort, the general authorized period is 16 hours per day at sea, and the maximum number of days per small-scale gear and shellfish vessel cannot exceed 180 days per year. Furthermore, a global limit of 7,000 annual fishing activity days is set for the entire fleet included in the plan.

The weekly rest also changes: between February 1 and August 31, there will be no mandatory rest and fishing will be allowed for a maximum of six days per week; between September 1 and January 31, a mandatory rest of 41 consecutive hours and a maximum of four days per week are established.

Trawling ban and lobster protection

For trawl fishing, a temporary ban is established from April 1 to August 31 and a maximum of three fishing days per week per vessel. Lobster catching may only be practiced between April 1 and August 31, and the octopus ban will last 105 days in the affected waters.

The text generally prohibits marine aquaculture and fishing with encircling gear within the scope of the plan, and limits netting gear to depths of less than 60 meters, with a maximum net length of 2,000 meters per crew member and up to 4,000 meters per vessel. It also provides mitigation measures for the accidental capture of seabirds in longline fishing between February and July, and mandates the release and reporting of accidental captures of cetaceans, turtles, and seabirds.

Co-management with the guilds and changes in underwater fishing

The Co-management Commission of the Management Plan for Professional Fishing in the Inland Waters of the Bays of Pollença and Alcúdia is established, of a consultative nature, composed of:

• One representative from the Fishermen’s Guild of Pollença, one from the Fishermen’s Guild of Alcúdia, and one from the Fishermen’s Guild of Cala Rajada.
• One representative from the Balearic Federation of Fishermen’s Guilds and one from the small-scale gear fishers, who will serve as president.
• Two people from the Directorate General of Fisheries, one as secretary, and one from the Directorate General of Natural Environment and Forest Management.
• One representative from the Natural Environment Planning Service, one from the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), one from the Local Fisheries Action Group of Mallorca, an expert appointed by the Director General of Fisheries, and a representative of local conservation entities.

The commission will meet ordinarily twice a year, and the plan will have an initial validity of six years, extendable for periods of two years.

The decree also modifies Decree 10/2019, of February 15, to require trawling vessels to join the Fishing Vessel Location and Tracking System of the Balearic Islands (SLSEPIB) and carry the “green box,” an obligation enforceable as of January 1, 2029. Likewise, it reforms Article 5 of Decree 34/2014, of August 1, so that underwater fishing licenses have a validity of three years instead of one.

The regulation directly affects the three guilds operating in the bays, the nautical sector, and those practicing underwater fishing in the area, and arrives with the objective of guaranteeing the environmental, economic, and social sustainability of authorized professional fishing in an area that coincides with spaces of the Natura 2000 Network, the Natural Park of the Llevant Peninsula, and the Marine Reserve of East Mallorca.

Fuente: Official Gazette of the Balearic Islands (BOIB), no. 126, October 6, 2026, Sec. I. General Provisions, p. 53952 (official reference: 1229943).