DRIFTING FISH AGGREGATING DEVICE (dFAD) SATELLITE BUOYS WASH ASHORE ON PALMYRA ATOLL AND HAWAII: A TOOL TO SOURCE AND PREVENT NETS FROM ENTANGLING REEFS?

Drifting fish aggregating devices (dFADs ) are commonly used in the purse seine tuna fishery to attract fish. dFADs are commonly made of bamboo rafts and floats wrapped in nets with stretches of nets hanging vertically in the water column. Fishing fleets track the location of floating dFADs using attached satellite transmitter buoys. Derelict fishing nets make up a considerable percentage of marine debris impacting the coral reefs of the Hawaiian Islands and Palmyra Atoll. Some net masses are identifiable as dFADs associated with purse seine fishing, and some of those still have attached satellite tracking buoys. Since 2014, at least 30 buoys have been recovered from marine debris in the Main Hawaiian Islands and Palmyra Atoll. Date, location, serial numbers, attached net descriptions, and photos are recorded in a database. This poster discusses how dFAD buoys can play a role in marine debris tracking, sourcing, site remediation, and prevention. Physical oceanographers could make use of previous tracks of recovered FAD buoys to predict future dFAD grounding events, if the data were made available. If abandoned buoys can be reprogrammed, the devices could be repurposed for future offshore tracking scientific studies. The unique identifiers on the buoys could be used to source the abandoned fishing gear to a particular vessel or fleet. Ideally, concerned parties could work collaboratively with the fishery to prevent abandoned dFADs from washing ashore. The fishery, satellite transmitter manufacturers, and state/federal agencies could decide together to make real-time GPS locations accessible when the dFAD drifts outside of sanctioned fishing grounds, allowing the salvage of the dFAD before it causes ecological damage in shallow coastal waters. Use of dFADs offer an opportunity to work with the fishing industry to minimize environmental harm.