The devices are triggered by acoustic technology or timers that activate their release.įishermen use fishery-specific GPS software to locate the pots from above water. Others have inflatable lift bags or buoys that float the pots to the surface.

Some devices use lines stored on spools or in bags or traps that sit on the ocean floor. “It’s nice to know that for this area, we’re really on the front end of this,” Fluech says.Įach gear type is rigged, deployed, and retrieved in a different way. It was the first time the ropeless gear had been tested in the South Atlantic. In the summer of 2020, the research team secured a permit from the National Marine Fisheries Service to test eight different ropeless gear systems with black sea bass pots off the coast of Georgia. Sawicki serves as the president of Sustainable Seas Technology, Inc., a nonprofit dedicated to promoting the use of innovation and technology in the safe and sustainable harvest of seafood. NOAA has identified two areas critical for right whales: off the coast of New England, where the whales forage for food in warmer months and off the southeast coast from North Carolina to Florida, where the whales reproduce between November and April.įluech prepares a ropeless fishing device for deployment.įluech is collaborating with Kim Sawicki, project lead and doctoral student at the University of Massachusetts – Dartmouth. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) fisheries estimates that 85% of right whales have become entangled in fishing gear at least once. “The use of ropeless gear could potentially remove nearly all entanglement risks to the whales and other marine animals,” says Bryan Fluech, associate director of extension at UGA Marine Extension and Georgia Sea Grant.įrom New England to Florida, researchers and fishermen are exploring ways to adapt their gear to spare the right whales. That makes the trip more expensive and more dangerous. Fishermen set those pots for a period of time before retrieving the pots and lines at the end of each trip.Ĭurrently, from November to April the fishing boats have to go about 30 miles offshore to set their pots in order to avoid the right whales that migrate south during the winter to calve. The ropeless fishing gear would allow boats easier access to black sea bass, which are caught using pots that are lowered to the ocean floor with vertical fishing lines connected to floats that sit on top of the water.

UGA Marine Extension and Georgia Sea Grant is working with commercial fishermen to test advanced gear that could expand their catch while protecting the endangered North Atlantic right whale. Education Resources & Teaching Materials.Coastal Awareness and Responsible Ecotourism Certification.UGA Marine Education Center and Aquarium.

North atlantic fishing