B.4.1 Prevent, locate, retrieve and handle abandoned, lost, or otherwise discarded fishing gear
Action Theme: Theme B: Actions to reduce sea-based sources of marine litter
Action number: B.4.1
Action Title: Prevent, locate, retrieve and handle abandoned, lost, or otherwise discarded fishing gear (ALDFG)
Lead Party(ies): Sweden as task manager for phase 1; Germany as task manager for phase 2 with support from Spain, the United Kingdom, ACOPS and GGGI
Image: ©Katrín Sóley Bjarnadóttir
What is the issue?
During fishing operations gear can be abandoned, lost or discarded - becoming marine litter. In the marine environment this equipment floats or can get caught up on either the seabed, habitats like reef structures or rocky outcrops. This ghost gear then continues to catch and entangle marine animals, act as transport or a vector for non-indigenous species and can also fragment over time into smaller particles, contributing to the microplastics problem.
This action focuses on ALDFG as a significant source of marine litter pollution. The action will address prevention of ALDFG at sea, its location, verification and removal, as well handling the retrieved fishing gear in a sustainable way, building on existing experience, linked to EU processes such as implementation of SUP-D (and related EPR-systems/collecting targets for end-of-life gear etc.) and be consistent with other international provisions such as the IMO regulations.
What has OSPAR done?
Under this action, OSPAR will secure effective cooperation among Contracting Parties to prevent, locate, retrieve and handle abandoned, lost, discarded fishing gear (ALDFG). The cooperation is intended to disseminate information of existing national- and international ALDFG work through the development of best practices addressing the marking of fishing gears, reporting, location/verification and their retrieval in an environmentally sound way with the aim to contribute to circular economy. From tha and where possible, additional joint ALDFG measures will be developed to further reduce this source of marine pollution.
Final outputs and published reports
Fishing gear marking workshop 2025
Presentations made at the meeting
Global Overview of Gear Marking Strategies for the Management of ALDFG
New EU Rules on Fishing Gear Marking: Implementation and control measures
FAO voluntary guidelines on the marking of fishing gear and risk assessment
The OSPAR harm report – biological impacts as a basis for risk assessment
