In cooperation with the Belgian Institute for Agricultural and Fisheries Research (ILVO), MARELEC has successfully designed and installed its HV1 ‘Hovercran’ electronic fishing gear on multiple shrimp beam trawlers.
In the Netherlands TX 25, HA 30 and WR40, along with FV Marlies – Bussum in Germany are among the early adopters. Skippers have confirmed that the bycatch, as well as the fuel consumption, have significantly decreased while maintaining the same catch rate.
The device is a modified 8m shrimp beam trawl, in which the heavy bobbin rope has been replaced with 12 lightweight electrodes. A harmless, low-intensity electric field close to the seafloor selectively provokes a startle response in brown shrimp.
The elevated footrope lets non-target species escape underneath the hovering trawl and collects the shrimp that jump up into the water column. This technique reduces bycatch volume by 35% and decreases seafloor contact by 75%. It has implications for a large number of shrimp fisheries around the world where bycatch is the biggest issue the industry faces.
The principle has potential advantages in selectivity, ‘green’ fishing and fuel savings in bottom trawling.
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