OSPAR scoping study on best practices for the design and recycling of fishing gear as a means to reduce quantities of fishing gear found as marine litter in the North-East Atlantic.

Abstract

The OSPAR Convention is the mechanism by which 15 Governments and the EU cooperate to protect the marine environment of the North‐East Atlantic. In 2014, OSPAR adopted a Regional Action Plan for Marine Litter (RAP ML), which sets out the policy context for OSPAR’s work to prevent and reduce the occurrence of marine litter in the North‐East Atlantic. In the latest OSPAR assessment of beach litter (2019), fishing related items was one of the top three most common litter types recorded on OSPAR beaches. To begin to address this important issue and to fulfil the objectives of the RAP ML, OSPAR is considering the design and recycling of fishing gear, and how this could play a part in reducing the amount of fishing gear found as marine litter in the OSPAR Maritime Area. This scoping document sets out current understanding of the provisions, challenges, barriers, solutions and best practice examples for design and recycling of fishing gear, while also providing suggestions for next steps. The information collated in this document may aid Contracting Parties in implementing Extended Producer Responsibility schemes for fishing gear containing plastics, as foreseen under the EU Directive (EU) 2019/904. The study was based on a detailed questionnaire, sent out in July 2019 to stakeholders across the fishing sector, and additional expert interviews. Preliminary conclusions were discussed and verified in an expert workshop in February 2020, organised in collaboration with the European Commission in the context of the implementation of the EU Directive on the reduction of the impact of certain plastic products on the environment (EU/2019/904).