Working Group on Electrical Trawling (WGELECTRA; outputs from 2023 meeting)

The Working Group on Electrical Trawling (WGELECTRA) works on improving knowledge of the effects of electrical or pulse fishing on the marine environment.

During the 2023 meeting, the working group considered a discussion on razor clam eletrofishing research trials, the only ongoing research on electrofishing. The final wrap-up of recent research on sole pulse was also highlighted.

Topics discussed by the group during the past 3 years confirmed findings that were discussed in the extensive Scientific WGELECTRA report at the end of the previous cycle in 2018. The main conclusion is that the application of electricity to catch fish has many potential applications in technological innovations to improve the sustainability of a fishery by improving the selectivity, reducing unintended bycatch or reduce the impact on the benthic ecosystem.

Pulse trawling was banned by the European Union in 2019. As a consequence, no new research on this topic has been approved since then. Due to lack of new research projects, the group agreed that there is not enough content to discuss in the coming years, and therefore decided to dissolve the group and transfer its members to the Joint ICES/FAO Working Group on Fishing Technology and Fish Behaviour (WGFTFB) where the group originated.