NETTAGPlus: solutions to tackle impacts of fishing gear

Every year, tons of fishing gear are discarded to the ocean globally, inflicting severe threats to marine habitats and wildlife while causing economic damage to the fishing sector. The timely tracking and recovery of lost fishing gear can minimize this risk, help preserve our oceans and boost the fishing sector. NETTAGPlus project will develop three innovative and sustainable solutions to mitigate the adverse impacts of abandoned, lost or otherwise discarded fishing gear (ALDFG) on marine life and habitats.
Based on synergistic activities between the fisheries industry, scientists and NGOs, NETTAGPlus will develop three solutions to PREVENT marine litter derived from fisheries activities, AVOID loss of fishing gears, and MITIGATE harmful impact by developing technology to help map and retrieving existing ALDFG. By reducing ALDFG and decreasing marine pollution, the project aims to minimise the introduction of hazardous chemicals and microplastics, prevent ghost fishing and the entanglement of endangered species, and enhance the mapping, tracking and retrieval of ALDFG technologies.
NETTAGPlus will test these solutions in real conditions within Atlantic and Mediterranean countries, namely Portugal (PT), United Kingdom (UK), Spain (SP), Italy (IT), Croatia (HR) and Malta (MT). The NETTAGPlus ambition is to change the paradigm of the fisheries industry, aspiring to transform the societal perspectives about the role of fishers as Guardians and Cleaners of the Ocean. NETTAGPlus will empower the sector to take effective actions to address marine pollution, promoting their role as key actors to tackle marine pollution.
NETTAGPlus is a three-year project funded by the EU Horizon Europe program, actively contributing to the EU Mission ‘Restore our ocean and waters by 2030’. It brings together an international and multidisciplinary team from seven different countries, including scientists, the fishing industry, governmental fisheries authorities, NGOs, and technological and knowledge-management companies.