Ghost fishing – when the sea becomes a graveyard for fishing gear.

Did you know that up to 30,000 fishing gear is lost every single year in Norway? At the same time, a comprehensive cleanup project between 2021 and 2022 managed to remove “only” 3,528 of them – spread over two years. It goes without saying: this does not add up.
The project "Measures Against Ghost Fishing in Marine National Parks" made an important effort in Raet, Jomfruland, Færder, and Ytre Hvaler. Lost traps, nets, and lines were mapped and retrieved, new technology was developed for more efficient cleanup, and researchers investigated how ghost fishing affects the marine life of the coast.

But the numbers show a serious structural problem:
🔹 Lost per year: ~30,000 tools
🔹 Removed in the project: 3,528 tools (over 2 years)
🔹 Proportion removed: ~6% of one year's loss
This means that the ocean is increasingly filled with lost tools – which continue to catch fish, crabs, and other species for years. It is not just an environmental problem – it is a resource problem and an ethical problem.
What is needed?
Prevention first. We need to make it easier and more profitable to secure tools against loss.
Technology in practice. Solutions such as f.eks. TrapSaver™, which make it possible to find and retrieve traps, must be widely adopted.
Scalable cleanup programs.We need lasting solutions, not just project funding.
Collaboration. Fishermen, authorities, technology providers, and environmental organizations must pull in the same direction.
Ghost fishing is a silent problem. It happens below the surface, literally. But the consequences are very real.