Impact of bycatch in fishing and its management

Bycatch is the global concern and it is causing number of problems to the fisheries. Recent WWF report estimates that 40% of marine catches and discards are juveniles. Higher level of bycatch has impact on diversity, community structure and biomass. Banning the destructive fishing practices is the very good approach for managing the fisheries. Nowadays bycatch reduction devices based on different aspects are being developed to make the fishing practices, environment friendly but it needs to be implemented properly. Regulations and guidelines are needed to be properly followed by all the fishers to recover the future stock. FAO has given the Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries which encourages the nations to make policies for the management of fisheries. This article details the impact of bycatch in fisheries and regulations and guidelines needs to be followed for managing the fisheries.