ISSN 2070-7010 FAO 600 FISHERIES AND AQUACULTURE TECHNICAL PAPER Abandoned, lost and discarded gillnets trammel nets – Methods to estimate ghost fishing mortality, the status of regiona 600 Abandoned, lost and discarded gillnets and trammel nets Methods to estimate ghost fishing mortality, and the status of regional monitoring and management Problems resulting from abandoned, lost and discarded fishing gear (ALDFG) from marine gillnet and trammel net fisheries is increasingly of concern. Marine gillnets and trammel nets, which have relatively high ghost fishing potential, are globally important gear types, supplying about a fifth of global marine fisheries landings. The study describes and evaluates approaches to estimate ghost fishing mortality rates and levels and reviews the status of international monitoring and management of ALDFG and ghost fishing by marine gillnet and trammel net fisheries. The report recommends methods to estimate ghost fishing rates and levels, identifies research priorities, and recommends future action to enhance data collection and management to prevent and remediate ALDFG and ghost fishing by marine gillnets and trammel nets. l monitoring and management ISBN 978-92-5-108917-0 ISSN 2070-7010 FAO 9 789 2 5 1 0 8 917 0 I5051E/1/10.15 Cover photograph: Top row, left to right: sperm whale entangled in a drift gillnet (Alberto Romero/Marine Photobank); artisanal gillnet fishing vessel, Solomon Islands (Wolcott Henry 2005/Marine Photobank); decomposed trevally caught in a ghost net, Muscat, Damaniyat Islands, Oman (Sijmon de Waal/Marine Photobank). Bottom row, left to right: removing salmon from a gillnet, Bristol Bay, Alaska, the United States of America (Karen Ducey/NMFS/NOAA Photo Library); derelict gillnet, Oahu, Hawaii, the United States of America (Frank Baersch/Marine Photobank); seabird caught in derelict net (Dave Peake/Marine Photobank). FAO FISHERIES AND Abandoned, lost and AQUACULTURE TECHNICAL discarded gillnets and PAPER trammel nets 600 Methods to estimate ghost fishing mortality, and the status of regional monitoring and management Eric Gilman FAO Consultant Honolulu, the United States of America Francis Chopin Fishing Operations and Technology Branch FAO Fisheries and Aquaculture Department Rome, Italy Petri Suuronen Fishing Operations and Technology Branch FAO Fisheries and Aquaculture Department Rome, Italy and Blaise Kuemlangan Development Law Branch FAO Legal Office Rome, Italy FOOD AND AGRICULTURE ORGANIZATION OF THE UNITED NATIONS Rome, 2016 The designations employed and the presentation of material in this information product do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) concerning the legal or development status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. The mention of specific companies or products of manufacturers, whether or not these have been patented, does not imply that these have been endorsed or recommended by FAO in preference to others of a similar nature that are not mentioned. The views expressed in this information product are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views or policies of FAO. 978-92-5-108917-0 © FAO, 2016 FAO encourages the use, reproduction and dissemination of material in this information product. Except where otherwise indicated, material may be copied, downloaded and printed for private study, research and teaching purposes, or for use in non-commercial products or services, provided that appropriate acknowledgement of FAO as the source and copyright holder is given and that FAO’s endorsement of users’ views, products or services is not implied in any way. All requests for translation and adaptation rights, and for resale and other commercial use rights should be made via www.fao.org/contact-us/licence-request or addressed to [email protected]. FAO information products are available on the FAO website (www.fao.org/publications) and can be purchased through [email protected]. iii Preparation of this document This publication was produced under a 2014 Letter of Agreement between FAO and the Global Programme of Action for the Protection of the Marine Environment from Land- based Activities, hosted by the United Nations Environment Programme, as Secretariat for the Global Partnership on Marine Litter. The study scope covered abandoned, lost or discarded fishing gear (ALDFG) from marine gillnet and trammel net fisheries. It describes methods to estimate ghost fishing mortality rates and levels, and synthesizes estimates of loss rates, density, duration of fishing efficiency and ghost fishing mortality rates. It also assesses related measures of regional bodies and arrangements for monitoring and managing ALDFG and ghost fishing. Information for the study was obtained through a review of published and grey literature, and consultations with relevant intergovernmental organizations. iv Abstract The ecological and socio-economic problems caused by abandoned, lost and discarded fishing gear (ALDFG) are increasingly of concern. Used primarily by coastal, artisanal, small-scale fisheries worldwide, marine gillnets and trammel nets, which have relatively high ghost fishing potential, account for about one-fifth of global marine fisheries landings. FAO and the Global Programme of Action for the Protection of the Marine Environment from Land-based Activities, hosted by the United Nations Environment Programme, as Secretariat for the Global Partnership on Marine Litter, commissioned this study to identify best practices to estimate ghost fishing mortality rates and levels, priority research needs, and the status of international monitoring and management of ALDFG and ghost fishing by marine gillnet and trammel net fisheries. Accurate estimates of total ghost fishing mortality levels can be made given quality data on the density of ALDFG retaining fishing efficiency, duration of ghost fishing efficiency, and total ghost fishing mortality level of a unit of effort of ALDFG over the full period that the derelict gear retains fishing efficiency. Recommendations to improve estimates of regional and global rates and levels of ghost fishing from ALDFG from marine gillnet and trammel net fisheries were made. An assessment was made and opportunities were identified to improve intergovernmental organizations’ data collection protocols and management measures to prevent and remediate ALDFG and ghost fishing by marine gillnets and trammel nets. FAO. 2016. Abandoned, lost and discarded gillnets and trammel nets: methods to estimate ghost fishing mortality, and the status of regional monitoring and management, by Eric Gilman, Francis Chopin, Petri Suuronen and Blaise Kuemlangan. FAO Fisheries and Aquaculture Technical Paper No. 600. Rome. Italy. v Contents Preparation of this document iii Abstract iv Acknowledgements vii Acronyms and abbreviations viii Executive summary x 1. Introduction 1 1.1 ALDFG causes and effects 1 1.2 International efforts to address ALDFG 4 1.3 Methods to mitigate ALDFG 6 1.4 Factors affecting ghost fishing efficiency and duration 9 1.5 Study scope and aims 11 2. Catching process, design and operation of marine drift and set gillnets and trammel nets 13 2.1 Gillnets 15 2.2 Trammel nets 17 2.3 Combination gillnets – trammel nets 18 3. Methods and estimates 19 3.1 Methods and results 19 3.2 Discussion 26 3.2.1 Methods and estimates of rates of abandonment, loss and discarding and use in estimating ALDFG density 26 3.2.2 Methods and estimates of the density of ALDFG 28 3.2.3 Methods and estimates of ghost fishing mortality rates and duration of fishing efficiency 30 3.2.4 Research priorities for robust regional and global estimates of gillnet and trammel net ghost fishing mortality levels 36 4. Monitoring and management by regional fishery bodies and arrangements 39 4.1 Introduction, study scope and methods 39 4.2 Results: RFB/A monitoring and management of ALDFG and ghost fishing 41 4.2.1 General Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean (GFCM) 43 4.2.2 Indian Ocean Tuna Commission (IOTC) 44 4.2.3 International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) 44 4.2.4 Joint Norwegian-Russian Fisheries Commission (JNRFC) 45 4.2.5 North Atlantic Salmon Conservation Organization (NASCO) 46 4.2.6 North Pacific Anadromous Fish Commission (NPAFC) 47 4.2.7 Pacific Salmon Commission (PSC) 48 4.2.8 Regional Commission for Fisheries (RECOFI) 48 4.2.9 Southern Indian Ocean Fisheries Agreement (SIOFA) 49 4.2.10 Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission (WCPFC) 49 vi 4.3 Discussion and conclusions 50 4.3.1 RFB/A mandate to monitor and control ALDFG 50 4.3.2 RFB/A logbook and observer data collection protocols on ALDFG 50 4.3.3 RFB/A controls of ALDFG and ghost fishing 51 4.3.4 Monitoring and controlling ALDFG and ghost fishing by bilateral and multilateral arrangements and bodies 53 5. Summary and recommendations 55 6. References 61 vii Acknowledgements The authors are grateful for assistance and information provided by: Robin Allen, South Pacific Regional Fisheries Management Organisation; Anthony Beeching, Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission; Simon Brockington and David Mattila, International Whaling Commission; Ricardo Federizon, Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organization; Martin Hall, Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission; Pilar Hernandez, General Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean; Miguel Herrera, Indian Ocean Tuna Commission; Peter