- A participatory and consultative process with more than 70 interested organizations has been launched for its elaboration.
- It consists of a guide with general criteria for action, a web platform, videos and other support materials.
- It is estimated that about 640,000 tons of fishing gear or its remains are lost or abandoned in the ocean each year.
The Ministry for Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge (MITECO) has developed a battery of tools to assist in the location and management of lost or abandoned fishing gear (APPA).
These resources are the result of two years of work in which a participatory process has been promoted with more than 70 organizations and interested parties through the INTEMARES-Lost Arts initiative, carried out by MITECO’s Directorate General for the Coast and Sea – within the framework of the LIFE INTEMARES project coordinated by MITECO’s Biodiversity Foundation – and whose objective is to advance towards the effective management of protected marine areas.
These tools seek to structure and streamline the processes of detection, analysis and assessment of the feasibility of APPA withdrawal. Specifically, the web platform artesperdidos.es brings together all the resources generated, including an updated repository and web viewer to inventory and geolocate the findings of lost or abandoned art. This web application is also presented as an innovative communication tool between users and managers and has an alert system if the element requires special action.
In addition to the software, in which you can freely browse, consult and download data, various resources are offered. Among them, and as a key element and backbone of this initiative, is the document of general criteria for the management of APPAs, a guideline that includes the main considerations for the management of lost or abandoned gear, in its different modalities and assumptions of discovery.
The tools also include audiovisual pieces of real cases to publicize the initiative and show some of the possible situations that can arise in the location and removal of lost and abandoned gear.
The Asociación Hombre y Territorio has collaborated in the development of the entire set of tools. In addition, a process of participation with the sectors involved in the management of these wastes has been promoted to generate agreed working guidelines, as well as a network of collaborating entities to ensure that the management of these elements is as efficient, safe and responsible as possible. This has involved the fishing sector; recreational and professional diving sectors; diving insurance companies; fishing inspection services; managers and technicians of protected marine areas; port authorities; Civil Guard; Maritime Rescue and researchers and third sector and conservation organizations.
A GLOBAL PROBLEM
It is estimated that about 640,000 tons of fishing gear or its remains are lost or abandoned each year in the world’s seas and oceans. It is a very particular type of marine debris that can have repercussions on marine ecosystems and their species, from the moment of its loss until long after. Its management contributes to achieving a good environmental status of our seas.
APPAs are defined as any fishing gear, or its remains or loose parts, that is beyond the control of its owner, either on the bottom, in mid-water or floating on the surface of the sea and that for any circumstance may have lost its function as a fishing tool by not retaining its normal configuration and operation.
The purpose of these tools is to improve the identification of this type of waste.
