DiscardLess project - Discard Mitigation Strategies Toolbox

Introduction

Aims

DiscardLess selectivity manual and factsheet

All the Documents (Manual and Factsheets) are issued from Scottish Marine and Freshwater Science and can be downloaded here : Scottish Marine and Freshwater Science website

This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 633680

using large square mesh top panels

to reduce roundfish bycatch in the beam trawl fishery

Target species:
Sole and plaice

Area, Vessel
63 tows took place on large beam trawlers (1200 HP, 10m) in the Southern North Sea.

Gear type:
beam

Gear modification
The top panel of a large beam trawl was fitted with 120 mm square mesh netting panels. Two panel sizes were investigated and were(i) 85 meshes deep and (ii) 128 meshes deep.

Results:
Large amounts of haddock and whiting escape through the top square mesh panels and the larger the panel the greater the number of fish that escape. There is a small loss of target flatfish species sole and no loss of plaice

Further information:
ADVIS II - ALTERNATIEVEN VOOR DE BOOMKORVISSERIJ. ILVO mededeling 134 heleen.lenoir@ilvo.vlaanderen.be, hans.polet@ilvo.vlaanderen.be

Citation :
Fonteyne, R. , 2017. using large square mesh top panels . In O’Neill, F.G. and Mutch, K. (Eds): Selectivity in Trawl Fishing Gears. Scottish Marine and Freshwater Science Vol 8 No 1.