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At Our Ocean Conference, Global Fishing Watch welcomes international partnerships to enhance ocean management

ATHENS, Greece, April 17, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Global Fishing Watch, an international nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing ocean governance through transparency of human activity at sea, has announced three pioneering collaborations with Greece, Panama and the West African Sub–Regional Fisheries Commission (SRFC) in a bid to harness technology and data–driven solutions for enhanced transparency, improved fisheries management and greater ocean sustainability.

The partnerships, unveiled at the 9th Our Ocean Conference held in Athens, Greece, will leverage open data to combat illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing, promote sustainable fisheries management and enable marine protection through deepened engagement with governmental bodies spanning three continents. In addition, they will provide Global Fishing Watch the opportunity to highlight transparency as a critical marine management tool and advance policy reforms regarding the adoption of vessel tracking methods like automatic identification systems (AIS) and vessel monitoring systems (VMS), as well as regional data sharing practices. 

“Today’s announcements mark a milestone in our collaborative efforts to mobilize open data and technology in the fight against illegal fishing and toward improved global fisheries management,” said Tony Long, chief executive officer of Global Fishing Watch. “More importantly, our expanding network of partnerships shows that governments and multilateral institutions are increasingly recognizing the role Global Fishing Watch can play in achieving better and more transparent ocean governance.” 

“Collaborative partnerships, political will and open data can drive tangible impact and help deliver lasting results for a sustainable ocean future for all,” Mr. Long added. 

Leveraging Technology for Ocean Action

Presented at an official conference side event co–hosted by Greece, the Athanasios C. Laskaridis Charitable Foundation and Global Fishing Watch, the partnership with Greece commits authorities to utilizing Global Fishing Watch’s platform, which provides visualizations and analysis of fishing activity, for critical support in bolstering the country’s marine protection efforts.

“Greece commits to establishing a scientific monitoring and surveillance system for all its marine protected areas that will be supported with advanced monitoring techniques and digital tools, such as remote sensing and automatic communication with sea vessels,” Dr. Petros Varelidis, Secretary–General for Natural Environment and Waters of the Hellenic Ministry of Environment and Energy, confirmed. “The support of Global Fishing Watch and the Athanasios C. Laskaridis Charitable Foundation will enable us to monitor fishing activity in near real–time.” 

A ‘significant step forward’ against IUU fishing

The Our Ocean Conference also welcomed a new partnership between Global Fishing Watch and the seven West African SRFC Member States comprising Cabo Verde, Gambia, Guinea, Guinea– Bissau, Mauritania, Senegal and Sierra Leone. Through the new three–year agreement with SRFC, Global Fishing Watch will support Member States with analysis and generated insights to inform targeted monitoring, control and surveillance (MCS) actions, bolstering countries’ abilities to manage activity in their waters and safeguard livelihoods and regional economic and environmental ecosystems. 

The 5,500 kilometer coastline of West Africa is home to some of the most diverse fisheries in the world and maritime activity plays a key role across the region. Indeed, fisheries and aquaculture directly contribute US$24 billion to the African economy, with the demand for fish expected to increase by 30 percent by 2030. Inadequate monitoring and enforcement, however, have led to rampant IUU fishing, with nearly 40 percent of fish caught illegally, resulting in substantial economic losses and environmental degradation.  

“The collaboration with Global Fishing Watch represents a significant step forward in the fight against illegal fishing in West Africa,” said Dr. Khallahi Brahim, Permanent Secretary of the Sub–Regional Fisheries Commission. “By joining forces, Global Fishing Watch and the SRFC can help transform fisheries governance, protect marine resources and secure the livelihoods of millions of people dependent on the fishing industry.”

The new partnership will work to ensure that SRFC Member States are fully equipped for better cooperation, monitoring and compliance, and also help establish cross–cutting initiatives with key stakeholders in ocean governance. The collaboration will pave the way for policy reforms and seek to establish AIS usage and data sharing as central pillars of SRFC Member States’ governance practices. It will also support government agencies in developing and retaining capacity to harness data and technology to strengthen management, including MCS, enforcement and marine protection. 

Charting a new era of ocean governance

Global Fishing Watch’s activity on the margins of the Our Ocean Conference also saw the renewal of an ongoing collaboration with the Government of Panama, first launched in 2019, aimed at building an improved, collaborative framework for data–sharing and policy development.  

The updated agreement reflects a deepened relationship between the two parties and a growing commitment to fisheries transparency. Supplementing the VMS data of its vast international fleet, which has been visible on the Global Fishing Watch map since October 2019, Panama will now share vessel data from its list of international licenses, including fishing licenses, areas of operation and information related to fishing support vessels. Over the next five years, Global Fishing Watch will also provide technical and data–driven assessments for the Aquatic Resources Authority of Panama to help inform national policies and regulations related to fisheries management.

“We are pleased to announce the renewal of the memorandum of understanding with Global Fishing Watch in our tireless fight against illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing,” said Hamed Tuñón, General Administrator, Aquatic Resources Authority of Panama. “Our strengthened alliance reflects the continued commitment of both parties to protecting our oceans and preserving their biodiversity. Together, we will continue to use innovative technology and collaborative strategies to ensure the sustainability of our valuable marine resources.” 

“Now, more than ever, the global community must rally behind landmark initiatives to protect our ocean, combat harmful practices, and achieve ambitious conservation targets such as safeguarding at least 30 percent of the ocean by 2030,” Mr. Long concluded. “Achieving these critical commitments will be virtually impossible without Global Fishing Watch’s innovative ocean monitoring technology and expertise.”

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New research harnesses AI and satellite imagery to reveal the expanding footprint of human activity at sea

WASHINGTON, D.C., Jan. 03, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — A new study published today in the journal Nature offers an unprecedented view of previously unmapped industrial use of the ocean and how it is changing.

The groundbreaking study, led by Global Fishing Watch, uses machine learning and satellite imagery to create the first global map of large vessel traffic and offshore infrastructure, finding a remarkable amount of activity that was previously “dark” to public monitoring systems.

The analysis reveals that about 75 percent of the world’s industrial fishing vessels are not publicly tracked, with much of that fishing taking place around Africa and south Asia. More than 25 percent of transport and energy vessel activity are also missing from public tracking systems.

“A new industrial revolution has been emerging in our seas undetected—until now,” said David Kroodsma, director of research and innovation at Global Fishing Watch and co–lead author of the study. “On land, we have detailed maps of almost every road and building on the planet. In contrast, growth in our ocean has been largely hidden from public view. This study helps eliminate the blind spots and shed light on the breadth and intensity of human activity at sea.” 

Researchers from Global Fishing Watch, the University of Wisconsin–Madison, Duke University, UC Santa Barbara and SkyTruth analyzed 2 million gigabytes of satellite imagery spanning 2017–2021 to detect vessels and offshore infrastructure in coastal waters across six continents where more than three–quarters of industrial activity is concentrated.

By synthesizing GPS data with five years of radar and optical imagery, the researchers were able to identify vessels that failed to broadcast their positions. Using machine learning, they then concluded which of those vessels were likely engaged in fishing activity.

“Historically, vessel activity has been poorly documented, limiting our understanding of how the world’s largest public resource—the ocean—is being used,” said co–lead author Fernando Paolo, senior machine learning engineer at Global Fishing Watch. “By combining space technology with state–of–the–art machine learning, we mapped undisclosed industrial activity at sea on a scale never done before.”

While not all boats are legally required to broadcast their position, vessels absent from public monitoring systems, often termed “dark fleets,” pose major challenges for protecting and managing natural resources. Researchers found numerous dark fishing vessels inside many marine protected areas, and a high concentration of vessels in many countries’ waters that previously showed little–to–no vessel activity by public monitoring systems.

“Publicly available data wrongly suggests that Asia and Europe have similar amounts of fishing within their borders, but our mapping reveals that Asia dominates—for every 10 fishing vessels we found on the water, seven were in Asia while only one was in Europe,” said co–author Jennifer Raynor, assistant professor of natural resource economics at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. “By revealing dark vessels, we have created the most comprehensive public picture of global industrial fishing available.” 

The study also shows how human activity in the ocean is changing. Coinciding with the COVID–19 pandemic, fishing activity dropped globally by about 12 percent, with an 8 percent decline in China and a 14 percent drop elsewhere. In contrast, transport and energy vessel activity remained stable.

Offshore energy development surged during the study period. Oil structures increased by 16 percent, while wind turbines more than doubled. By 2021, turbines outnumbered oil platforms. China’s offshore wind energy had the most striking growth, increasing ninefold from 2017 to 2021.

“The footprint of the Anthropocene is no longer limited to terra firma,” said co–author Patrick Halpin, professor of marine geospatial ecology at Duke University. “Having a more complete view of ocean industrialization allows us to see new growth in offshore wind, aquaculture and mining that is rapidly being added to established industrial fishing, shipping and oil and gas activities. Our work reveals that the global ocean is a busy, crowded and complex industrial workspace of the growing blue economy.” 

The study highlights the potential of this new technology to tackle climate change. Mapping all vessel traffic will improve estimates of greenhouse gas emissions at sea, while maps of infrastructure can inform wind development or aid in tracking marine degradation caused by oil exploration.

“Identifying offshore infrastructure is critical for understanding offshore energy development impacts and trends, and is crucial data for our work to detect marine pollution events and hold responsible parties to account,” said co–author Christian Thomas, a geospatial engineer at SkyTruth.  

The open data and technology used in the study can help governments, researchers and civil society to identify hotspots of potentially illegal activity, determine where industrial fishing vessels may be encroaching on artisanal fishing grounds, or simply better understand vessel traffic in their waters.

“Previously, this type of satellite monitoring was only available to those who could pay for it. Now it is freely available to all nations,” concluded Kroodsma. “This study marks the beginning of a new era in ocean management and transparency.”

The study was made possible thanks to the generous support of Bloomberg Philanthropies, National Geographic Pristine Seas and Oceankind, and our technology partner, Google. As an awardee of The Audacious Project, a collaborative funding initiative that is catalyzing social impact on a grand scale, Global Fishing Watch is able to further the application of this innovative work.

Notes to the editor:

  • Download supporting data visualizations and figures from the paper here: Media kit
  • Download the data at: https://globalfishingwatch.org/datasets–and–code 
  • Data providers: The co–authors of the study wish to acknowledge the contribution from the following technology and data providers; AIS: Spire, ORBCOMM; Radar and optical imagery: European Space Agency (ESA); and Computing resources: Google / Earth Engine.

Global Fishing Watch is an international nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing ocean governance through increased transparency of human activity at sea. By creating and publicly sharing map visualizations, data and analysis tools, we aim to enable scientific research and transform the way our ocean is managed. We believe human activity at sea should be public knowledge in order to safeguard the global ocean for the common good of all.

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