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Join us for the next SMMR Webinar in the series with Tara Marshall from the University of Aberdeen.

Lessons learned from the design and deployment of an industry-based tool for avoiding by catch in Scottish fisheries

C. Tara Marshall
University of Aberdeen
c.t.marshall@abdn.ac.uk

An innovative, web-based app, known as the Bycatch Avoidance Tool using Mapping (BATmap; https://info.batmap.co.uk ), was co-developed by the University of Aberdeen, the Scottish Fishermen’s Organisation and Scottish skippers and launched in June 2020. It is currently being routinely used by 16 fishing vessels operating on the west coast of Scotland. Skippers log the start and end time of each haul, and the total catch of cod, whiting and spurdog, three species which they may wish to avoid catching. The data are combined and alerts, including hotspot maps, are automatically sent out to users when pre-defined levels of catch are exceeded. This real-time, spatial information allows skippers to make more informed decisions about where and when to fish. The complex process of co-developing and implementing BATmap, the first successful implementation of information sharing for bycatch avoidance in European waters, will be reviewed to inform the ongoing development of similar initiatives in other fishing regions.