Expert Consultation on the Marking of Fishing Gear Global

Food and Agricultural Organisation FAO - Project Dates:
August 2015 - December 2015

Description of Project:
The FAO Code of Conduct that sets out principles and international standards of behaviour for responsible practices with a view to ensuring the effective conservation, management and development of living aquatic resources, with due respect for the ecosystem and biodiversity. Section 8.2.4 of the Code of Conduct states that fishing gear should be marked in accordance with national legislation in order, that the owner of the gear can be identified. Gear marking requirements should take into account uniform and internationally recognizable gear marking systems.

FAO prepared a set of guidelines for the application of a system for the marking of fishing gear through an expert consultation process, culminating in a workshop in early 2016. The Proceedings have now been published as FAO Fisheries and Aquaculture Report No. R1157.

Services Provided:

A director of Poseidon prepared background papers on the two issues of (i) abandoned, lost and discarded fishing gear (ALDFG) and illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fisheries and their relationship with gear marking. He also acted as a faciliator in the workshop, maintaining the zero draft of the guiddelines as they developed.