Special for fishing gear

Background and purpose

Ghost fishing

Fishing gear made of plastic, including nets, lines, and buoys makes up 27% of all littered waste in oceans and on beaches, which corresponds to more than 11,000 tonnes a year (cf. EU Commission’s Fact Sheet on the Single-Use Plastics Directive). Lost fishing gear continues for years to catch fish and other marine animals – to no avail. This is called ghost fishing. In addition, marine mammals and diving birds risk becoming trapped, thus drowning in fishing gear that floats around or lies on the seabed. Lost fishing gear causes ghost fishing and pollution with microplastics that considerably damage biodiversity and the marine environment.

Since the recycling potential is large, it is desirable to have these plastics collected to protect the environment and boost circular processes. Producers and importers will now become subject to financing clean-up, collection, and disposal of lost fishing gear as well as to contributing to public information campaigns.

Producers pay for clean-up, not the fishermen

Concretely, the producer responsibility means that companies putting fishing gear on the market that will be subject to waste management in Denmark must be held financially and organisationally responsible to meet this purpose.

What types of fishing?

A distinction is made between the different categories of fishing gear depending on its use. Fishing gear used in connection with the following is subject to producer responsibility and is categorised as follows:

• Commercial fishing gear
• Other fishing gear

Which fishing gear?

According to the draft Statutory Order in-scope fishing gear containing plastic is defined as:

Any item or piece of equipment that is used in fishing or aquaculture to target, capture or rear marine biological resources or that is floating on the sea surface, and is deployed with the objective of attracting and capturing or of rearing such marine biological resources.

While we are waiting for the Statutory Order

The EU Commission has published a number of background reports and guidelines regarding fishing gear and plastic pollution.

• Reducing Marine Litter: action on single use plastics and fishing gear
• Terminology for fishing gears.

Reporting of fishing gear made of plastic put on the market and collected

In an implementation decision, the EU Commission has set out a registration format to be used by in-scope companies in all EU countries. This means that annual quantities of fishing gear put on the market and collected end-of-life fishing gear must be reported in defined categories with material-based sub-groups.

Source: The EU Commission’s implementing decision no. 2021/958 of 31 May 2021