Fishing Gear and Its Impact on the Environment
Fishing gear is a tool used to capture aquatic resources. It can be operated from a boat or hand-operated in shallow waters. Different types of fishing gear affect the environment in different ways. More info
For example, longline fishing targets grouper and swordfish. Longlines typically use thousands of baited hooks to catch these fish.
Similarly, trawling is a type of fishing where a net is pulled across the seabed. Trawls are usually set at night. They are then dragged along the seabed, catching anything that cannot pass through the mesh openings.
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In order to avoid unnecessary impacts on marine ecosystems, fishing gear must be regulated. It is also important to regulate the amount of bycatch. This can be done by setting up fishing rules and by adding excluder devices.
Some of the most commonly used fishing gear includes trawls, gillnets, and traps. These methods are not necessarily sustainable. To address these issues, scientists are developing innovative fishing gear that does not have a negative impact on the marine ecosystem.
Fishing gear should be designed and maintained for specific target species. If the desired target species does not exist, unwanted fish must be thrown back into the ocean. Bycatch can include incidental mortality of high conservation value species.
The FAO publishes a report on the state of the world’s fisheries and aquaculture. It has also published a sustainability in action report.
Most fishing gear is based on the use of lures or artificial baits. However, many of these methods can be modified to decrease the number of entanglement incidents.
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