SYDNEY, May 7 (Xinhua) -- A report released on Tuesday has raised concerns regarding fishing vessels, known as "supertrawlers," capable of reeling in giant catches which environmentalists said is devastating for ecosystems.
The report released by Australian Marine Conservation Society and Save Our Marine Life (SOML), stated that Australia's current ban on vessels over 130 meters is insufficient and fails to regulate vessels under that length which is still classified as supertrawlers.
"These ships have the capacity to catch, process and store hundreds of thousands of tonnes of fish using one of the most indiscriminate methods you could think of," SOML's spokeswoman Adele Pedder said in a statement.
"Super trawlers are incompatible with everything we are striving for in our marine environment."
One example given by the report is Geelong star, a 95-meter freezer-fitted vessel which operated in Australian waters between 2015 and 2016.
At that time SOML campaigned against the Geelong's operations which resulted in the deaths of 47 seals, 11 albatross and nine dolphins, according to the Australian Fisheries Management Authority.
SOML said that as the world's fish stocks diminish, more operations will begin looking to Australia to make up the shortfall.
"Australia has not been immune to the impacts of industrial fishing, with overfishing and collapsed stocks, some of which are yet to recover," study author Chris Smyth said.
"There now exists a new threat, with supertrawlers and other large fishing vessels roaming the oceans looking for fish, and Australian waters are now in their sights."
