Ahmet Raif Erya?ar, Hüseyin Özbilgin, Ali Cemal Gücü, Serdar Sak?nan,
Marine debris in bottom trawl catches and their effects on the
selectivity grids in the north eastern Mediterranean, Marine Pollution
Bulletin, Volume 81, Issue 1, 15 April 2014, Pages 80-84, ISSN
0025-326X, http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2014.02.017.
(http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0025326X14001131)
Abstract: In this study composition of marine debris and their blocking
potential on the selectivity grid systems deployed on demersal trawls
were investigated in the north eastern Mediterranean. For this, a total
of 132 hauls were examined in two fishing season between 20 September
2010 and 19 February 2012. Results showed that plastic items were the
most abundant debris (73% in terms of weight) and they were followed by
metals (10%). Because of plastics and packing debris, it is highly
probable that grids may have been blocked in 85% of trawl hauls. The
bathymetric and geographical variability in the quantity of debris were
evaluated, and concluded that particularly in some areas where direction
of currents and bottom topography favor deposition, such devices may
easily be rendered ineffective by the plastics and packing debris in
particular. To solve this problem, several solution proposals are submitted.
Keywords: Bottom trawl; Marine debris; Selectivity grid; Plastic; Mersin Bay