Ghost nets threaten the marine ecosystems

The book “Minacce nascoste sotto il mare: le reti fantasma” edited by Stefania Tonin and published by Franco Angeli Editore, is available starting from today in bookstores and on the main online purchasing platforms. The volume, written in Italian language, illustrates how a team of researchers has addressed this serious threat to the marine ecosystem by providing management solutions to mitigate / reduce the problem.

What are the ghost nets? What impacts can they have on marine ecosystems and economic activities? What are the best strategies to reduce their presence and protect the marine environment? To answer these questions, a team of researchers from the Institute of Marine Sciences of the National Research Council, the IUAV University of Venice and the Laguna Project snc company worked for three years within a project funded by the European Commission's LIFE Program, called LIFE-GHOST: Techniques to reduce the impacts of ghost fishing gear and to improve biodiversity in north Adriatic coastal areas.

The data collected between 2013 and 2016 in an area of ​​particular environmental value, i.e. the subtidal rocky outcrops  off the Venetian coast, showed how these habitats are heavily impacted by the presence of the ghost nets, which cause alterations of the seabed and consequently loss of biodiversity. The great challenge of the LIFE-GHOST project, coordinated by the Institute of Marine Sciences (CNR-ISMAR), was to set up the basis  for the development of a management strategy aimed at reducing the impacts of this specific marine litter pollutant and identifying possible recycling routes for the collected materials. .

The volume, included in the series “Uomo, Ambiente, Sviluppo” by Franco Angeli Editore, intends to illustrate the multidisciplinary approach followed by the project to address the ghost nets issue, making the reader aware of this particular type of marine waste and stressing the need for its correct management in order to safeguard not only the health of marine ecosystems but also economic activities related to the sea.

The book Minacce nascoste sotto il mare: le reti fantasma is available in all Italian bookstores and on the main online purchasing platforms starting from 21 June 2021.