The EU’s ban on discarding caught fish in February 2013 has received widespread applause. Why?
Like fly fishing, sea fishing has become a fine art. Most fishing techniques will involve some take of fish which the fisher may not want or may not be allowed to take. This could be because they are undersized or of a species that the fisher does not have quota for. In some cases fishers are allowed to throw unwanted fish back into the sea, a practice referred to as discarding.
Discarding can be a significant share of the total, as is the case in some shrimp fisheries where unwanted catch may be up to 90% of the total catch. While gear technology and skilled fishers can reduce by-catch it is not possible to avoid it entirely.
See full Article: http://www.oecdobserver.org/news/fullstory.php/aid/3985/The_EU_fish_discard_ban:_Where_92s_the_catch_.html
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