Santiago de Compostela, 14 December 2021. The Institute of Marine Research (IIM) will present this week the main results achieved in the iGENTAC, GEOCAP and SICAPTOR 2.0 projects, launched a year ago with the collaboration of Fundación Biodiversidad, of the Ministry for the Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge, through the Pleamar Programme, co-financed by the EMFF.
15 December: GEOCAP and SICAPTOR 2.0 results event
Tomorrow, Wednesday 15 December, the results of “Integration of total catch databases into a spatial infrastructure for sustainable fisheries management (GEOCAP)”, led by Ricardo I. Pérez Martín (Food Biochemistry), and “New vision technologies applied to the development of more compact and flexible standardised electronic monitoring systems for total catch (SICAPTOR 2.0)”, led by Luis Taboada Antelo (Biosystems and Bioprocess Engineering), will be presented at the MARCO Museum in Vigo.
“GEOCAP” started from previous projects —LIFE FAROS, LIFE iSEAS and SICAPTOR— that had led to the development of tools to help implement new aspects of the European Union’s Common Fisheries Policy.
After one year of research, software has been developed to extract fisheries data entered by skippers in the Electronic Logbook (DEA); a protocol has been defined to systematise transmission of the data generated by each vessel; and a Geoportal has been built that allows data processing to generate maps and reports according to the percentage of unwanted catches and discards, as well as a map viewer with catch and discard percentages that helps skippers carry out sustainable fishing activity while minimising unwanted catches. The final step now is to make available to skippers and shipowners a web tool that allows them to geolocate areas with the highest density of unwanted catches or discards.
The project, coordinated from the IIM, included collaboration from the Spanish Institute of Oceanography (IEO-CSIC), the Lugo Fisheries Producers Organisation (OPP-7), the Carboneras Fisheries Producers Organisation (CARBOPESCA) and the Sanlúcar de Barrameda Fishermen’s Guild.
“SICAPTOR 2.0” started from previous projects —LIFE FAROS, LIFE iSEAS and SICAPTOR— which addressed methods for obtaining real data on catches and discards made by fleets. Specifically, these projects developed and optimised the real-time electronic monitoring system for automatic quantification and identification of species on fishing vessels known as iObserver.
The objective was to generalise and standardise the use by the Spanish fleet of electronic monitoring systems focused solely on quantifying the total catch in the fishing deck, avoiding the reluctance that other current systems generate among fishers because they record their activity in different parts of the vessel. To this end, the iObserver system has been redesigned. This device allows total catch on board commercial vessels to be quantified automatically, with the aim of minimising its size and maximising its performance so as to increase the viability of its widespread installation on board and its acceptance by shipowners and crew in all different segments of the trawl fleet.
The project included the collaboration of the Fisheries Producers Organisation of the Port and Ría of Marín (OPROMAR) and the Spanish Institute of Oceanography (IEO-CSIC).
The presentation event for the results of both projects, GEOCAP and SICAPTOR 2.0, is divided into two blocks. It will take place from 09:30 to 13:45. It is an in-person event at MARCO Vigo, with prior registration.
Block 1, “The importance of digitalisation for sustainable fisheries management”, will consist of three talks. Eva Gil Velasco (IEO-CSIC) will speak on “Data as a tool to guarantee the sustainability of fishing activity”; Luis Taboada (IIM-CSIC) will present “Development of a compact and flexible electronic monitoring system for total catch”; and Ricardo Pérez (IIM-CSIC) will address “Integration and management of total catch databases as a basis for efficient fisheries-management policies”.
Block 2, “Digitalisation initiatives by administrations”, will include presentations by Mercedes Rodríguez Moreda (Xunta de Galicia), who will speak on “The challenge of digitalising the Galician fishing sector”; Aurora de Blas Carbonero, from the General Secretariat for Fisheries, who will address “Promoting digitalisation of the fishing sector within the framework of the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan”; and a representative of the European Fisheries Control Agency, who will discuss strategies for obtaining and processing/managing data by the European Union.
After the talks, there will be a round table with representatives of fishing organisations, companies and administrations.
“iGENTAC” represents a step forward in work carried out in projects funded in previous PLEAMAR calls —TAC and DesTAC— that achieved strategic objectives using acoustic telemetry. The objective of the iGENTAC project was to develop innovative tools, based on minimally invasive sampling techniques, for the implementation of monitoring programmes for coastal species in a marine protected area (Atlantic Islands of Galicia National Park): artificial-intelligence techniques, molecular genotyping methods based on their use, and acoustic telemetry. The target species selected was Raja undulata.
The results show that all three are useful tools with potential for implementing long-term monitoring in this environment. Specifically, acoustic telemetry has proven essential for studying behavioural and movement patterns in marine species. Applying the artificial-intelligence tool to individual photo-identification represented a significant advance in establishing a non-invasive tagging system in mark-recapture studies. In addition, genomic tools were used to generate a unique genetic fingerprint for each sampled individual, and this code has made it possible to identify them quickly and accurately, allowing them to be tracked over time.
The project included the collaboration of the Atlantic Islands Maritime-Terrestrial National Park and the Center for Coastal Research at the University of Agder (Norway).
The webinar presenting its main results will be held on 16 December, from 11:00 to 12:40, and can be followed through the IIM YouTube channel.
It will include talks by the project director and members of the research team. Alexandre Alonso and Gonzalo Mucientes will speak on “Monitoring movement and behaviour”; Laura Casas and Miguel López on “Genetics applied to the ecology of natural populations”; and Luis Taboada and Nuria Gómez on “Artificial intelligence applied to photo-identification in fish populations”.