Ghost Nets Ghost nets are the general term for commercial fishing nets and lines that have been abandoned, discarded, or lost in seas and oceans. Ghost nets pose a serious threat to aquatic life. Every year, millions of marine creatures become entangled in these nets, struggling and losing their lives. Crustaceans, whales, turtles, dolphins, birds, and sharks are just a few examples of many species affected. It is estimated that ghost nets cause a loss of about 10% of fish populations.
Not only that, but the nets entangled around coral reefs cause the death of corals and the invasion of parasites and invasive species in these reefs.
Additionally, these nets also harm the sustainability of well-managed, protected fisheries. They get entangled in fishing boats or kill economically valuable species. Furthermore, they disrupt the natural beauty of the coasts, incur high cleaning costs, and affect tourism and the diving industry due to these costs.
Ghost Fishing
Ghost nets are typically made from petroleum-derived plastic materials. This means they can remain intact for years without degrading or sustaining any damage. The lethal effects of ghost nets can be observed far from the points where they were discarded into the sea. Traveling for years with ocean currents, they can lead to the demise of many creatures at the points they reach or along the routes they follow.
This phenomenon is referred to as ghost fishing because they catch many fish and other marine creatures during their journey.
The captured creatures may become exhausted, drown, die of starvation, or lose a limb, which can lead to their inability to swim and subsequently result in starvation or similar deaths. Small species caught in these nets attract larger predatory species (such as dolphins, sharks, and turtles) as prey, causing them to become entangled as well.
Death Cycle
This destructive cycle can last for decades. We can describe this cycle as follows: the ghost net, which becomes heavier with the living creatures on it, sinks to the ocean floor, where small creatures living on the ocean floor feed on the entangled organisms. When the net becomes lighter again, it rises to the surface and continues its journey. Unfortunately, this horrifying cycle continues due to the durability and non-degradability of new generation nets.
Nets generally end up in the ocean for many different reasons.It can come to an end. We can list them as follows;Bad weather conditions
Vandalism
Insufficiency of recycling facilities or problems in delivering to the facility
Nets getting caught on the seabed
Destructive fishing methods
Neglect of equipment
Many factors such as overfishing and exceeding the carrying capacity can be listed.As can be understood here, the main pollutant factor is again humans. Unfortunately, ignorance, selfishness, and greed mean that humans, the most dangerous species on Earth, harm themselves and their surroundings.**Proposed Solutions**Although there is no easy and immediately applicable solution to this problem, educating fishermen about potential damages, integrating GPS into fishing equipment, establishing waste acceptance facilities or recycling facilities at fishing ports to collect damaged equipment, shifting towards sustainable methods, and changing the design of fishing gear to ensure that it does not harm natural life when discarded or lost at sea are seen as long-term solutions.Currently, organizations have been established in many places to combat this issue.
