Administrative Order No. 258, s. 2018 establishing Tuna Conservation and Management Zones (TCMZ) in the Mindanao/Celebes Sea.

This Administrative Order, consisting of 6 Sections, establishes Tuna Conservation and Management Zones (TCMZ) in the Mindanao/Celebes Sea. All concerned fishermen groups/alliances/ cooperatives/associations, LGUS and BFAR-RFOs 9, 11,12 ARMM are enjoined to implement this policy. A Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) among BFAR, LGUs and beneficiary groups shall form the basis of managing the TCMZ. It shall be unlawful to catch tuna in the TCMZ area by means of purse seine, ringnet, or other fishing with the use of nets. The allowed fishing gears are handline, troll line and other hook and line fishing methods. Pursuant to Section 95 of R.A. 8550 as amended by R.A. 10654, violation of this order upon a summary of administrative liability, the owner, operator, boat captain and master fisherman of the vessel, or the chief executive officer in a corporation, or the managing partner in a partnership shall be punished with confiscation of the catch and fishing gears, and a fine three times the value of the indicated value.