...
welcome to illegal fishing.info
documents
news
profiles
events
presentations
search site
home
sign up!
This menu organises news, documents, projects, profiles and links into key topics, and the menu along the top divides the contents of the site by type.

...
New to these issues?
...
New to this site?
...
Glossary of terms
...
[]New to this site
Development, communities and livelihoods
...
Environment, biodiversity and fish stocks
...
[]Impacts
Bycatch / discards
...
Capacity building
...
Certification
...
Chain of custody / Supply chain management
...
Corruption / mismanagement
...
Enforcement
...
Flag state issues
...
Governance / management
...
International trade / WTO
...
Monitoring, control and surveillance
...
Organised crime
...
Port state issues
...
Retail / consumers
...
Tracking technology
...
Transshipment
...
[]Issues ...
Bycatch / discards

Capacity building

Certification

Chain of custody / Supply chain management

Corruption / mismanagement

Enforcement

Flag state issues

Governance / management

International trade / WTO

Monitoring, control and surveillance

Organised crime

Port state issues

Retail / consumers

Tracking technology

Transshipment

...
African Union / New Partnership for Africa's Development
...
CITES
...
EU Action Plan
...
EU Common Fisheries Policy
...
FAO / UN High Seas Processes
...
High Seas Task Force
...
RFMOs
...
Southern African Development Community (SADC)
...
US Lacey Act
...
[]Political processes
Africa
...
Central America
...
East Asia
...
Eastern Europe and North Asia
...
Europe
...
Middle East
...
North America
...
Ocean Areas
...
Oceania
...
RFMOs
...
South America
...
South Asia
...
[]countries []rmfos []ocean areas [] ...



tools
contact
search
site map
...
printer friendly version
last updated:

18th Apr 13

Managed by Chatham House
Chatham House logo

Financed by DEFRA
DEFRA logo
Bycatch / discards

In most fisheries, non-targeted species are caught alongside the targeted species. Some of the non-targeted species may have a value and be taken to port, but the greater portion of it will be unwanted and therefore discarded.

The discarded proportion of the catch may include commercially important fish species that are not wanted: this might be because the fish are under-sized, over quota or not of sufficiently high value to the fisher. Bycatch may also include non-fish species, such as sea birds, marine mammals or turtles.

The amount of bycatch varies greatly between different types of fisheries but it is one of the key environmental impacts of fishing. WWF have recently estimated that bycatch represents over 40% of global marine catches. Significant efforts have been made in recent years by both states and RFMOs to reduce the proportion of bycatch and the resulting discards, and retailers, such as M&S are moving away from fish sourced through techniques with high discard rates.


...
::documents (2)
::news (66)
...



Global patterns of marine turtle bycatch

06/04/2010

Fisheries bycatch is a primary driver of population declines in several species of marine megafauna (eg. elasmobranchs, mammals, seabirds, turtles). C ...

Author: Conservation Letters (Bryan P. Wallace, Rebecca L. Lewison, Sara L. McDonald, Richard K. McDonald, Connie Y. Kot, Shaleyla Kelez, Rhema K. Bjorkland, Elena M. Finkbeiner, S'rai Helmbrecht, & Larry B. Crowder)
...
back to top

Defining and estimating global marine fisheries bycatch

15/04/2009

Unselective fishing catches non-target organisms as 'bycatch' - an issue of critical ocean conservation and resource management concern. The ...

Author: WWF
...
back to top



15/02/2011

FAO: Action on responsible fisheries

Author: World Fishing and Aquaculture

...
back to top

28/05/2010

FOA helps combat illegal activities in line with its mandate

Author: Economist, Namibia

...
back to top

17/05/2010

N. Sea cod returning to health - WWF

Author: Fishupdate.com

...
back to top

20/04/2010

Shrimp caught up in environmental restrictions

Author: IPS News

...
back to top

06/04/2010

Turtles killed 'in millions' by fishing gear

Author: BBC News

...
back to top

30/03/2010

Pilot project for cod catch quota

Author: Fishupdate.com

...
back to top

16/03/2010

Loggerhead turtles have chance at protection

Author: Herald Tribune, Florida, US

...
back to top

12/03/2010

Loggerhead turtles may be put in endangered category

Author: Thaindian News, Thailand

...
back to top

05/03/2010

Indian Ocean tuna commission fails again on tuna, does better with sharks

Author: WWF

...
back to top

02/03/2010

Trials to reduce cod by-catches

Author: Fishupdate.com

...
back to top

24/02/2010

Turtle center wants gill net rules enforced

Author: WITN.com, North Carolina, US

...
back to top

19/02/2010

Sea turtles may shut down gill net fishing in North Carolina

Author: Examiner.com

...
back to top

05/02/2010

Mother and baby humpback whale rescued near Puerto Vallarta, Mexico

Author: PRLog

...
back to top

04/02/2010

Whales, dolphins and porpoises suffer dramatic declines from by-catch in fishing nets

Author: United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)

...
back to top

21/01/2010

Gill net fishing to close for seven months

Author: jdnews.com, North Carolina, US

...
back to top

05/01/2010

WWF welcomes new rules to stamp out illegal fishing activity

Author: fishnewseu.com

...
back to top

05/01/2010

NOAA proposes habitat protection for sea turtles

Author: The Sacramento Bee, US

...
back to top

29/12/2009

Ten to watch in 2010

Author: WWF

...
back to top

22/12/2009

Fishing biz kills turtles, whales and albatross off Hawaii, enviro groups say

Author: Courthouse News Service, US

...
back to top

21/12/2009

Local fishermen sue National Marine Fisheries Service

Author: Wicked Local, US

...
back to top

17/12/2009

Oceana urges EU Spanish Presidency to champion protection of the oceans

Author: fishnewseu.com

...
back to top

16/12/2009

New EU fish quota deal agreed

Author: Telegraph, UK

...
back to top

16/12/2009

Lawsuit: Hawaii swordfish fishery expansion jeopardizes turtle survival

Author: Environment News Service

...
back to top

11/12/2009

Threat to Pacific tuna greater than ever: Key negotiations fail in Tahiti

Author: Scoop Independent News, New Zealand

...
back to top

03/12/2009

Dramatic results in reducing discards announced

Author: Fishupdate.com

...
back to top

02/12/2009

Tigers, polar bears and blue fin tuna among the most threatened species in 2010, says World Wildlife Fund

Author: WWF

...
back to top

28/11/2009

Taiwan, Japan agree to on-board inspections of fishing boats

Author: Taiwan News

...
back to top

27/11/2009

Decision on fish dumping postponed

Author: Times of the Internet

...
back to top

21/11/2009

We're killing the oceans. Is it too late to save the seas that sustain us?

Author: World Sentinel

...
back to top

20/11/2009

France and Spain block measures to reduce fish waste

Author: Fishupdate.com

...
back to top

10/11/2009

Innovative £250,000 fisheries scheme to help tackle discards

Author: Fishupdate.com

...
back to top

09/11/2009

Look to East Coast Pirates to see where this could lead

Author: SourceUK.net

...
back to top

07/11/2009

Illegal fishers escape the spotlight

Author: The Sydney Morning Herald, Australia

...
back to top

03/11/2009

Lochhead calls for 'remote control' fisheries policy to be switched off

Author: Fishupdate.com

...
back to top

09/10/2009

Scotland tackling discards is a win win for fishermen and conservation

Author: Fishupdate.com

...
back to top

05/10/2009

Norwegian vessels banned from fishing in Scottish waters

Author: FIS (Fish Information Service)

...
back to top

09/09/2009

From deep Pacific, ugly and tasty, with a catch

Author: The New York Times

...
back to top

02/09/2009

EU fishieries chief urges end to discards

Author: Fishupdate.com

...
back to top

28/08/2009

Last chance for the Atlantic bluefin tuna?

Author: Florida Sportsman, US

...
back to top

26/08/2009

Consumers can support sustainable fishing methods

Author: The Miami Herald, Florida

...
back to top

21/08/2009

CCTV bid to reduce fishing waste

Author: BBC News

...
back to top

18/08/2009

Ruling on longline fishing aids turtles

Author: The New York Times

...
back to top

17/08/2009

Peterhead vessel in new drive to cut discards

Author: Fishupdate.com

...
back to top

25/07/2009

CCTV hits the high seas in bid to cut fish discarding

Author: The Scotsman, UK

...
back to top

01/07/2009

Fleet cuts, quotas the buzz at tuna meet

Author: Associated Press

...
back to top

29/06/2009

Time to get serious for tuna nations

Author: Pesca2.com

...
back to top

02/06/2009

Film warns of 'world without fish'

Author: BBC News

...
back to top

27/05/2009

WWF and M&S promote solutions to discarding

Author: Fishupdate.com

...
back to top

27/05/2009

EU Ministers support radical fisheries reform

Author: ICTSD

...
back to top

07/05/2009

Excessive bycatch of cod undermines moratorium: cod bycatch was at least 70 per cent higher than target levels

Author: Science Daily

...
back to top

27/04/2009

Greenpeace launches tuna guidelines

Author: Fishupdate.com

...
back to top

22/04/2009

UK welcomes Fishing Policy reform proposals

Author: Fishupdate.com

...
back to top

21/04/2009

Marine turtles victims of Southeast Asian fishing nets, says WWF

Author: AFP

...
back to top

21/04/2009

Oceana asks EU for measures to stop 3,000 tonnes of marine catches thrown away every day

Author: Oceana

...
back to top

15/04/2009

WWF claim 40% of fish catch is bycatch

Author: Fishupdate.com

...
back to top

15/04/2009

Lawsuit seeks gulf longline fishery closure for turtles' sake

Author: Environment News Service

...
back to top

15/03/2009

Joint operation against illegal fishing commendable

Author: This Day, Tanzania

...
back to top

13/03/2009

Norway proposes new international guidelines for by-catch management and discards

Author: Pesca2.com

...
back to top

22/01/2009

Tuna discards in the Indian Ocean - 72% of all by-catch

Author: Atuna

...
back to top

13/01/2009

Ecosystem approach to fisheries management

Author: European Parliament

...
back to top

15/12/2008

Hope for a reduction in discards

Author: Fishupdate.com

...
back to top

11/11/2008

EU must stop waste of fish - WWF

Author: Fishupdate.com

...
back to top

05/11/2008

One million tons of North Sea fish discarded every year

Author: Environment News Service

...
back to top

21/10/2008

Cod stocks recovery plan: MEPs call for an end to all discards

Author: European Parliament

...
back to top

24/09/2008

Dumping fish and the damage it causes to the environment under spotlight

Author: Fishupdate.com

...
back to top

28/03/2007

Commission proposes to end waste of fisheries resources

Author: Europa

...
back to top