50,000 square meters of ghost net removed in Balıkesir

The Balıkesir Municipality has stated that 50,000 square meters of ghost nets have been removed from the Aegean and Marmara seas over the past three years as part of a comprehensive campaign to combat the threats posed by these nets to marine biodiversity.

The extensive project, carried out in collaboration with Çanakkale 18 Mart University and the Agriculture and Forestry Ministry's provincial directorate, focused on Cunda Island, the largest of the Ayvalık Islands archipelago. During this time, a total of 1,500 square meters of purse seine nets and 400 meters of lengthening nets were also successfully retrieved from the sea.

Mayor Yücel Yılmaz visited divers searching for abandoned nets, which cover a significant portion of the seabed and disrupt the ecosystem.

"Our ghost net hunters diligently work for hours underwater, striving to leave behind a healthy environment for future generations," said Yılmaz, expressing his gratitude to the entire team involved in this endeavor for their role in preserving marine life. The mayor reiterated the municipality's commitment to ongoing bay cleaning efforts.

Since last year, in a bid to eradicate the problem of ghost nets and prevent poaching, fishermen who are engaged in commercial fishing in the seas have been required to attach QR code tags containing personal information to all their net materials.

According to the Agriculture and Forestry Ministry's data, some 18,500 vessels engaged in fishing activities in the seas and inland waters of Türkiye in 2020.