From Ecuador Focus June 6, 2005 

Restrictions on catching valuable sea cucumbers were lifted last week after fishermen in the Galápagos threatened for several months to strike over the issue. The management board of the Galápagos National Park authorized a fishing season of 60 days to start June 12 during which time up to three million sea cucumbers can be collected. The echinoderm fetches high prices because it is prized in Asia for its supposed properties as an aphrodisiac. The management authority had initially planned to ban sea cucumber fishing during 2005 and 2006, but Environment Minister Ana Alban said that the prohibition was being lifted mainly due to social and economic pressures. Environmental organizations have warned that this fishing season will only further deplete the sea cucumber population. During the fishing season in 2004, fishermen did not even meet a limit of four million which was initially established before being overturned by a local court. This practically annul battle over sea cucumber fishing is one of the constant conflicts between local residents who wish to see more development in the protected islands and those who wish to conserve them.