EU Will Pay Fishermen to Catch Plastic

Under an interesting new plan from the EU’s fisheries chief, fishermen will be paid to catch plastic instead of fish. The goal is to provide these workers with another source of income to reduce pressure on quickly dwindling fish stocks.

Maria Damanaki, commissioner for fisheries, will start a trial project in the Mediterranean this month, which will see fishermen equipped with nets to gather up plastic garbage and send it for recycling.

The European commission wants to ban the wasteful practice of discarding edible fish at sea. Two-thirds of the fish caught in some areas is thrown back, usually dead, because fleets catch more than their allowed quota or because they prioritize higher valued fish and throw away lesser valued fish.

“Ending this practice of throwing away edible fish is in the interest of fishermen, and consumers,” Damanaki told the Guardian in an interview. “It has to happen – we cannot have consumers afraid to eat fish because they hate this problem of discards.”

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