EJF is campaigning to reduce bycatch in marine fisheries

A single trawl's catch
A single trawl's catch
Bycatch - the capture of non-target species in fisheries - can amount to far greater quantities than the commercial stocks they are targeting. Around 20 million tons of bycatch are discarded annually by the world’s fisheries – a massive waste of marine life at a time when our oceans are under unprecedented fishing and other pressures. Bycatch occurs in many fisheries; EJF is currently focusing upon two fishing methods that pose a significant threat to marine biodiversity and local communities that are dependent on coastal resources:

  • Bottom Trawlers

    Used to fish for shrimp (and other species) commercially. It is a "catch-all" technique that involves dragging large, fine-mesh nets along the seabed or through deepwaters. Shrimp trawlers, particularly those in the tropics, can catch over 400 marine species in their nets. Tropical shrimp fisheries typically take 10 kilos of bycatch for every 1 kilo of shrimp. Currently, tens of millions of tonnes of bycatch are taken by shrimp trawl fisheries worldwide each year, most of which is discarded. Shrimp fisheries alone are responsible for 27.3% of the world's discarded catch, despite producing less than 2% of global seafood.
    Download EJF's report on trawl fisheries, Squandering the Seas

 

  • Driftnets

    Used illegally, since a UN Moratorium banning their use came into force, these "walls of death" entrap any animal that swims into them. An estimated 85% of animals caught in driftnets are thrown back into the sea, dead or dying. In the Mediterranean, some fishing fleets continue to use driftnets illegally to catch valuable swordfish, tuna and other species. Morocco for example, with 177 illegal fishing vessels, has been described as "the most lethal for Mediterranean marine biodiversity". A recent study found that four boats alone killed a total of 237 dolphins, 498 blue sharks, 542 shortfin makos, 464 thresher sharks and 46 loggerhead turtles, along with 2,990 swordfish (the target catch).
    See EJF's campaign to end illegal driftnets in the Mediterranean Sea
 

EJF is working to:


  1. End the illegal use of driftnets in the Mediterranean.
  2. Ensure that European fishing vessels operating in distant waters of Africa and Asia are subject to legally-binding bycatch provisions that are, at the very least, of a comparable standard to regulations governing vessels operating in European waters.What's the Catch? details the issues at stake.
  3. Develop an International Plan of Action on Bycatch Reduction that will bring together disparate efforts and focus targeted measures for the swift reduction in this global problem. EJF will press governments to take immediate action to reduce bycatch in all fisheries.
  4. Reduce bycatch in tropical shrimp trawl fisheries.