Investigating transport, resuspension, penetration impacts of demersal gears (113499)

The physical impact of fishing gears on the seabed can lead to habitat degradation, benthic mortality, increased fuel consumption, the release of organic carbon and nutrients from the seabed, and the resuspension and transport of sediment and micro-plastics.

To minimize these impacts, we need to develop more environmentally friendly, low-impact, sustainable fishing techniques. We will do this by improving our understanding of the physical interaction of fishing gears with the seabed, and then use this knowledge to identify and modify the gear components that have the greatest impact.

Specifically, we will investigate how the gear design and towing speed influences the overturning and mobilization of sediment, the depth of penetration of the gear into the sediment, and the transport and diffusion of sediment. We will do this for a range of sediment types ranging from muds to coarse sand and because we will work at the level of the gear component, we will be able to distinguish both within and across gear categories.

This will allow us to make informed, quantitative evaluations of the gear impacts. We will be able to assess the contribution from individual gear components and raise these assessments to the fleet level. Hence, it will be possible to identify gear modifications and design changes that will contribute most to reducing the environmental impact of towed demersal fisheries.

We will use this information, in collaboration with the fishing industry, to identify case study fisheries where we will develop low-impact, environmentally friendly fishing gears.

Funding
The project is co-funded by the European Union through the Danish Maritime, Fisheries and Aquaculture Programme (EMFAF).

Research area: Fisheries Technology
Research area: Ecosystem based Marine Management
Research area: Marine Habitats