Dear GGGI Members,

Greetings! We hope that you are all well and thriving and ready for the season ahead!

Now that September is here, we at GGGI have been feeling  grateful for the ability to connect with you, our members, whether it be through webinars, meetings in person or virtual, or even through shared work in the field. 

As always, we have been busy these past months. With our team reassembled and at full capacity, we are able to do so much more to address ALDFG in many parts of the world. Our 2022 Annual Report, highlighted in this newsletter, is a great place to catch up on all the good work that we did last year. 

More recently, our team has been in Canada, holding workshops with fisherfolk, government agencies, and other interested stakeholders. We will also report on the Trilateral Government Round Table, where the governments of the U.S., Canada, and Mexico connected to address ALDFG on our contiguous coastlines. Please read on for more details on these subjects and more!

The GGGI community draws strength from the success of its members: if you have news you’d like shared in a future edition of the newsletter, please send it to our GGGI Coordinator, Laura Walker at lwalker@oceanconservancy.org. If you know someone who might like to hear future news from us, ask them to subscribe!

Sincerely, 

The GGGI Team

On Tuesday, August 29, representatives of Canada, Mexico, and the U.S. gathered virtually for the first Trilateral Government Roundtable on Ghost Gear entitled: Advancing Cooperation to Address Ghost Gear in North America. The meeting was hosted by GGGI Project Coordinator (Latin America) Claudia Olimon, and attended by GGGI Director  Ingrid Giskes and GGGI Program Manager Jaclyn McGarry.

The meeting drew 43 participants including; Canada: Environment and Climate Change (ECC); Fisheries and Oceans (DFO); and the Commission for Environmental Cooperation (CEC). USA: US State Department; National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA); and United States Trade Representative (USTR). Mexico: Secretariat of the Navy; National Commission of Aquaculture and Fishing (CONAPESCA); Energy Secretariat (SENER); Secretariat of Foreign Affairs (SRE); National Institute of Fisheries and Aquaculture (INAPESCA); Federal Attorney for Environmental Protection (PROFEPA). National Commission of Protected Natural Areas (CONANP); Secretariat of Environment and Natural Resources (SEMARNAT); International Conservation Caucus Foundation, and the House of Senators.

GGGI Associate Director Joel Baziuk and GGGI Coordinator Laura Walker traveled to Eastern Canada in August to facilitate two, two-day workshops in St. John, New Brunswick, and Halifax, Nova Scotia. The workshops were held to bring together fishers, government agencies, NGOs and other stakeholders to address ALDFG in the Bay of Fundy. 

One of the key observations from the workshops was that fishers doing ghost gear retrieval in the Bay of Fundy were finding that ~85% of the lobsters that were found in recovered ghost gear were 10-15 pound brood stock (both male and female), which could be having significant impacts on the lobster population. The fishers suggested collecting additional data on the size of the lobster found in derelict pots and increasing the size of lobster pot escape hatches so these lobsters can escape to breed. There were also robust discussions on the use of technology to improve fishing operations and reduce ghost gear, such as on-demand “ropeless” lobster gear systems to relieve pressure on whale populations and including passive sonar reflectors to make lost gear easier to find for recovery. 

The fisher workshops were a great success and facilitated new relationships between Canadian parties interested in reducing harm from ALDFG. We aim to hold similar workshops in the Gulf of Maine in early 2023.

On Novermber 7 & 8, 2023 GGGI will be sponsoring the first International Conference on Ghost Gear in Arendal, Norway, organized by the Institue of Marine Research and the Norwegian Directorate of Fisheries. Associate Director Joel Baziuk will open the conference as one of three keynote speakers, with Dr. Kelsey Richardson from FAO giving a keynote talk on science and research and Tord Aslaksend of Green Bay AS giving a keynote talk on technology for gear retrieval. The purpose fo the two-day conference is to bring together ghost gear experts, fisheries managers, researchers, specialists in ghost gear removal, technology companies, and gear producers, to find solutions for how to reduce the effects of ghost gear on marine populations and ecosystems. The conference is currently receiving submissions for 15 minute talks and 5 mintue speed talks. 

GGGI Associate Director Joel Baziuk to Speak at Caribbean Regional Fisheries Mechanism’s Ghost Fishing Webinar

On Friday, September 8, 2023, GGGI Associate Director Joel Baziuk will be a featured speaker at the Caribbean Regional Fisheries Mechanism’s (CRFM) 20th Anniversary Webinar: Strategies for Attacking Abandoned Lost and Discarded Fishing Gear in the Caribbean. This webinar will explore the challenges associated with ghost fishing in the Caribbean, as well as some of the practical, cost-effective, and environmentally sound options for tackling the problem. It will also highlight the experiences, successes, collaborative work and future plans of CRFM Member States and partners, including Global Ghost Gear Initiative, and feature the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MOU) between the GGGI and the CRFM, further strengthening our joint commitment to addressing ghost gear in the region.

GGGI Associate Director Joel Baziuk & GGGI member Ning Yen of Indigo Waters Institute spoke at the International Workshop on Prevention of Abandoned, Lost or Otherwise Discarded Fishing Gear in Tokyo, Japan on Sept. 5. The symposium aimed to address the present conditions of ALDFG in the East Asia region, to share the knowledge, good practices, and lessons learned on how to tackle the ALDFG, and to build the relationship on which future international cooperation can be developed.

The book provides practical approaches to growing a business around the recycling and repurposing of ALDFG materials, and presents examples and solutions in marketing new products. Of particular interest is a chapter focused on Opportunities for Circular Business Models and Circular Design Related to Fishing Gear authored by Professor Martin Charter of the Center for Sustainable Design (a GGGI member and GGGI Expert Advisory Council member). 

New Hampshire lawmakers have passed a groundbreaking piece of legislation, House Bill 442, aimed at tackling the lingering problem of ghost gear. The bill, backed by Northfield Republican Rep. Gregory Hill, requires the Fish and Game department to devise a strategic cleanup plan for this derelict gear. This is one of, if not the, first bill of its kind directed at addressing ghost gear at a state level.

• Lost Fishing Gear represents up to 75% of plastic found on coral reefs as reported by Seafood Source News.

• Healthy Seas - a long-time GGGI member -  won in the Best Environmental Film Category for its short documentary “Journey to Ithaca” at the Cannes World Film Festival!

   

We're always looking to promote the various stories and successes of our GGGI Members! If you have something ghost gear related that you would like us to put in our newsletter, please email GGGI Coordinator, Laura Walker at lwalker@oceanconservancy.org.