Success stories

Dutch researchers and fishers are developing a digital tool to implement fully documented fisheries (FDF), with support from the EU.

Marine litter not only has negative environmental impacts, it is also bad for local business, from tourism to small-scale fishing and aquaculture. The “Litter Spain” project in Galicia, shows how to foster new opportunities in the circular economy.

The EU-funded TEKNOFISK and AUTOCATCH projects are developing an automatic catch information system that will provide detailed data on the catch entering the trawl, thus enabling fishers to make informed decisions on the ongoing catching process.

The EU-funded BIOGEARS project aims to provide the aquaculture sector with innovative bio-based ropes that contribute to a more sustainable aquaculture sector.

Traditionally, unwanted species caught during fishing, were often thrown back over the railing. This wasteful practice negatively affected the sustainable exploitation of marine biological resources, marine ecosystems and the financial viability of fisheries.

The world has a growing appetite for fish and seafood. For biodiversity and stock preservation reasons, this demand cannot be satisfied by fisheries alone. This is where aquaculture comes into play, but conventional fish farming has its own built-in challenges.

Maritime transport is today responsible for about 2.5% of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. According a study from the International Maritime Organisation (IMO), shipping emissions could increase between 50% and 250% by 2050, under a business-as-usual scenario.

Ecosystems knowledge is essential to assess the state of marine resources, such as fish stocks, and underwater environment, thus enable sound decision- and policymaking.

With a circular economy approach, the EU-funded OCEANETS project aims at dealing with marine litter, preventing the loss of the fishing gear, making the recovery of lost fishing gear much easier, and recycling the gears once recovered.