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From honoluluadvertiser.com

Gill Nets Decimate Reef Fish

(From honoluluadvertiser.com) Honolulu – The state Department of Land and Natural Resources implemented rules regarding lay nets last year, but some who say they have witnessed frequent violations complain the rules are not being properly enforced. 

A recent National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration report showed that of 55 reef fish species studied in the main Hawaiian Islands, 42 percent were in critical condition and 33 percent were depleted.

Overfishing is one of the main causes behind the declining fish populations, said Alan Friedlander, one of the NOAA study’s lead authors.

Gill nets are often set in one location and left unattended as fish get caught in them.

Other factors contributing to a decline are growing human populations and coastal development, which have disrupted reef habitats, he sai. Lay gill net fishing is a method of capture using rectangular monofilament mesh nets with floats on the top and weights on the bottom.

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