Sustainability and the Environment

Longlining activities are receiving a bad name around the world for the number of seabirds that are hooked and drowned during the setting and hauling of lines. Of particular concern is the much-loved black-browed albatross as numbers have seriously declined in the southern oceans.

However, using very simple methods, incidental mortality of seabirds can be reduced to negligible levels. CFL and the vessels operating out of South Georgia have proved this time and time again.

What are those measures?

Weights: by placing heavy weights regularly along the line, the lines sink much faster during setting operations and the seabirds have no time to target the baited hooks before they disappear beneath the surface. Manually pushing the weights off the stern hatch when setting ensures that the line doesn’t snag and tighten above the water-line as the weights plummet to the bottom.

Tori lines: tori lines consist of long lines attached to the stern of the vessel with streamers attached and which are towed along behind the boat during setting. The effect of the streamers is to ring-fence the hooked longlines and so discourage the birds from attacking the line.

Hook Removal and Disposal: ensuring that the crew are alert and properly trained in the factory to remove any hooks caught in the discards and to dispose of them properly is critical to ensure that birds are not getting hooked when feeding off the discards from the vessel.

Brickle Curtain: a simple mechanism around the hauling area consisting of rope lines connecting poles at right-angles to the vessel, prevents birds from becoming hooked as the line is winched up from the sea-bed. The device was developed by a former employee at CFL, Paul Brickle, and is now used on vessels all around the world.