Report of the Expert Workshop on Means and Methods for Reducing Marine Mammal Mortality in Fishing and Aquaculture Operations

The workshop reviewed the current state of knowledge on the issue of marine mammal bycatch, and evaluated the efficacy of different strategies and measures for mitigating bycatch and their implementation. It produced some key technical outputs, including an extensive review of techniques across different gear types and species, together with a summary table and a draft decision-making tool which could be used to support management decision-making processes. In addition to that, among the recommendations made were FAO's role in developing Technical Guidelines on means and methods for prevention and reduction of marine mammal bycatch and mortality in fishing and aquaculture, and the Organization's potential role in establishing a global capacity development programme to support developing States.