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Fishers will be paid to catch plastic, rather than fish, under a new plan from the European Union's fisheries chief, aimed at providing fleets with an alternative source of income to reduce pressure on dwindling fish stocks.

Maria Damanaki, Commissioner for Fisheries, unveiled a trial project in the Mediterranean this month, which will see fishers use nets to round up plastic at sea and send it for recycling (click here).

"Fishers who clear plastic will be subsidised initially by EU member states, but in future the scheme could turn into a self-sustaining profitable enterprise, as fleets cash in on the increasing value of recycled plastics.  Cleaning up the rubbish will also improve the prospects for fish, seabirds and other marine species, which frequently choke or suffer internal damage from ingesting small pieces of non-biodegradable packaging."

Extension of such a scheme to those parts of the World's oceans where plastic pollution causes mortality of ACAP-listed albatrosses and petrels might be a valid conservation measure.  For example, ridding the North Pacific Ocean of at least some of its floating plastic cigarette lighters should reduce the numbers fed to their chicks by the albatrosses of the Hawaiian islands (click here for an article  on cigarette lighters ingested by the albatrosses of the USA's Midway Atoll).

The Fifth International Marine Debris Conference took place in Hawaii in March this year.  The conference developed the Honolulu Strategy which:

"sets forth a results-oriented framework of action with the overarching goal to reduce impacts of marine debris over the next 10 years.  This goal will be achieved through the collective action of committed stakeholders at global, regional, country, local, and individual levels.  The Honolulu Strategy is being developed through an iterative process working with debris managers and practitioners around the globe."

John Cooper, ACAP Information Officer, 29 May 2011