Effects Of Ghost Fishing On Ecosystems and Biodiversity

Ghost fishing is when fishing equipment is lost or abandoned and keeps on catching organisms in an uncontrolled manner in the water body, which creates an environmental impact on aquatic ecosystems and biodiversity. Due to the fact that most fishing equipment is made of durable artificial materials, it tends to stay active in the environment for a considerable amount of time, causing unaccounted mortality to both target and non-target species. Ghost fishing may impose more pressure on endangered species and, in the end, cause restructuring of populations, species extinction, predator-prey relationships, and food web interactions. Ghost fishing affects other organisms in a way different from causing their mortality. Ghost fishing equipment that settles to the bottom of the water or moves along the bottom has the potential to cause physical harm to the benthic ecosystem and may even cause invasion by certain organisms into new areas. Moreover, fishing gear made of synthetic polymers like polyamide, polyethylene, and polypropylene has the potential to break down slowly in the water and cause microplastic pollution by adding plastic to aquatic food webs. Because deaths caused by ghost fishing are not recorded in official catches, it may also contribute to an underestimation of total fishing mortality and fish stock assessment, which could cause faulty fishery management policies. Hence, stopping ghost fishing and the removal of lost or discarded fishing gear are necessary for biodiversity conservation, habitat protection, pollution prevention, and sustainable fisheries management.