Plastic pollution of the fateful kind: Environmentalists focus on the threat to marine wildlife from ghost nets. In a report, the WWF clarifies the extent and causes of the global problem as well as possible solutions. According to the environmental protection organization, it is most likely to make the recovery of the lost nets a government task.
From the shore zones to the most remote areas of the oceans – plastic remains bob up and down in the waters of the earth and it’s getting worse and worse. The ugly signature of humans mainly consists of discarded plastic parts and so each and every one of us is asked to limit their waste generation as much as possible. But there is another important cause of plastic pollution in the oceans: at least a third of the world’s pollution is due to fishing, reports the WWF in its report. The bottom line is that fisheries are responsible for around one million tons of additional plastic in the oceans every year. “Fishing waste in the sea is just as big a problem as packaging waste. We don’t see it, however, because it mostly drifts under the surface of the water or lies on the bottom of the sea, ”says Andrea Stolte from WWF.
For the report, the nature conservation organization has compiled a lot of data on the global problem. The extent of the Pacific garbage vortex is particularly clear, reports the nature conservation organization: This huge accumulation of plastic waste under the spell of ocean currents actually consists almost half of ropes or fishing lines and parts of nets. And as in other areas of the sea, new material is constantly being added: around the globe, a third of all longlines and fishing lines are lost every year, and in the European seas alone nets that would reach a length of 1000 kilometers disappear every year, reports the WWF.
“Ghostly” threat
The fatal thing about it is: nets are made to catch marine animals and the hard-to-break structures fulfill this function for a long time when they float through the water without an owner. Fish, turtles, marine mammals and birds get caught in the ghost nets and then perish miserably. In addition, the nets can also lie like deadly blankets over reefs. “For marine animals, they are the most dangerous type of plastic waste. They can get tangled up in it, tie off limbs and suffocate or starve to death, ”says Stolte.
But how can the problem be countered? The legal basis is not lacking, at least in principle: at the international level, the disposal of fishing equipment at sea is prohibited both by the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea and by the MARPOL Convention. Accordingly, fishermen are actually obliged to rescue lost nets themselves or to report the loss to the national authorities. But as in other cases, laws that are not monitored have little effect, the WWF emphasizes. “A control is hardly possible on the international level on the seas, there is simply a lack of funds and political will”, says Jochen Lamp from WWF. So far, environmental protection organizations have taken over the recovery of some nets in many countries – financed by donations.
Solution: State-organized rescue
“The problem of pollution from ghost nets can therefore only be solved if the individual coastal states take responsibility for it,” says Lamp. “Control, rescue and prevention must therefore become a state task or a matter for the federal states. For this purpose, clear responsibilities must be created for the authorities so that it is clear who has to carry out the rescue ”. Lamp emphasizes that not only certain, but all nets should be recovered. “At the moment, this is only considered necessary when the safety of shipping lanes is at risk. The harmful effects on the environment are left out ”.
According to the WWF, an important point is to increase the reporting rate of lost nets by protecting fishermen. One thing is clear: you usually don’t leave the nets in the sea on purpose – the expensive utensils are often lost due to adverse circumstances. Fishing without losing any net seems to be almost impossible. “As long as the fishermen are left alone with the rescue or are asked to pay, the willingness to report a lost net is low,” says Lamp. At least as far as the fight against ghost nets in Europe is concerned, the WWF therefore proposes using funds from the European Fisheries Fund to finance salvage and thus increase the reporting rate.
Ultimately, combating the global problem is in everyone’s interest, emphasizes the environmental protection organization. In addition to the general threat to marine ecosystems and particularly endangered species, ghost nets also damage fisheries and thus an important source of human nutrition: According to the report, 90 percent of the species that get caught in them have commercial value. Against the background of the sometimes dramatic overfishing of many fish stocks, this appears particularly bitter. Resolute action is now called for to save the oceans from the ghostly danger, so the conclusion of the WWF.
Source: WWF, Report “Stop Ghost Gear”