350 square meters of ghost net removed from Dardanelles

ÇANAKKALE

Within the framework of the “Cleaning the Seas from Abandoned Fishing Vehicles Project” by the Agriculture and Forestry Ministry’s Fisheries Department, 350 square meters of abandoned fishing net have been removed from Turkish waters around the Dardanelles Strait and the islands of Bozcaada (or Tenedos) and Gökçeada (or Imbros) with the help of divers from the Turkish Coast Guard Command.

The project, which started in 2014, aims to protect the habitats of fishery products, prevent uncontrolled hunting caused by abandoned fishing gear, reduce biological and economic losses and revitalize fishing activities.

The efforts came after the detection works within the scope of the project, which was initiated to clean the nets and fishing gear that were abandoned in the seas due to ground structure, weather conditions, net conflict or usage errors during aquaculture fishing.

Dives were made in 41 locations in total, especially in the Dardanelles Strait, the surroundings of islands, and the areas opening to the Marmara Sea, said Erdem Karadağ, the provincial director of the ministry.

“As a result of these dives, an area of ​​500,000 square meters was scanned, where we brought a ghost net of around 20,000 square meters out of the sea,” he added.