The purpose of this study is to select a fishing gear deposit marking method for the gear deposit system implemented for gillnet. The fishing gear deposit system was implemented in Korea for the first time in the world in January 2024 for fish trap, and it is scheduled to be expanded to gillnets and buoys by 2026. In this study, an AHP (Analytic Hierarchy Process) survey was conducted with 34 experts. The AHP analysis method was used to calculate the weights of each criterion that influence the selection of the deposit marking method, in order to determine the optimal marking method that considers both qualitative and quantitative criteria. Experts prioritized the label-type marking and preferred the weight-based deposit unit for its ease of application and ability to measure multiple gear widths at once. This study quantitatively reflects the opinions of experts on the selection of the gillnet deposit system. Future research should examine the impact of marking method on fishing performance, durability, and institutional improvements.

In response to the global interest and efforts towards reducing plastic use and promoting resource recycling, there is a growing need to establish methods for recycling discarded fishing gear. In Korea, various technologies are being developed to recycle discarded fishing gear, but significant technical and policy challenges still remain. In particular, biodegradable gill nets require a pre-treatment process to separate biodegradable materials from other substances and to remove salt before recycling. Therefore, this study aims to develop a pre-treatment device for recycling biodegradable gill nets and to evaluate the feasibility of recycling them.

We analyzed risk factors of coastal gillnet fishers during fishing process and considered work safety measures to reduce safety accidents during fishing using a UWB (ultra wideband) based positioning system. The static position accuracy of the UWB based positioning system was 45 cm. When entering a port, there is a risk of falling overboard. When casting a net, there was a risk of falling overboard due to being hit by fishing gear or guards, or getting caught in a buoy line or sinker line. When hauling a net, there is a risk of getting caught between fishing gear and net hauler, and the risk of musculoskeletal disorders due to repetitive work over a long period of time. Most safety accidents during work on fishing boats are blamed on human errors of the fisher and skipper, but safety accidents occur due to a mixture of mechanical and equipment factors, work and environmental factors, and management factors in addition to human errors. Therefore, the 4E were presented as countermeasures against the 4M, which are causes of safety accidents, and the proposed measures were used to identify risk factors for operation process, comply with work safety rules, and ensure the wearing of personal protective equipments. We need to reduce safety accidents during work by making it part of our daily routine. These research results can be used in the future for optimal placement of fishing gear and fishing nets in other coastal industries where safety accidents occur frequently.

A variation of fish assemblage in the coastal waters of Sagye-ri, southern Jeju Island was determined using samples collected by trammel net from 2012 to 2022. The total fish species caught by trammel net were identified 88 species, 46 families, 12 orders, and the number of appearance and biomass were 3,479 individuals and 883.6 kg. The annual variation of species was the highest in 2013 at 46 species and the lowest in 2021 at 30 species. The seasonal variation of species was higher in summer at 67 species and lower in winter, autumn at 47 species. The annual diversity index, evenness index, and richness index were appeared 2.42-3.00, 0.69-0.78 and 5.18-7.24 at each years. The dominance index appeared highest in 2013 and the lowest in 2018. Cluster analysis based on the number of individuals of fish was classified into two groups at the dissimilarity level of 57%, and results of SIMPROF analysis revealed significant differences in community structure among the two groups. The subtropical fishes were identified a total of 42 species (47.7%) and the number of species was higher in 2013 at 25 (54.3%) species and lower in 2018 and 2021 at each 17 (54.8~56.7%) species. The dominant species of subtropical fishes were appeared rabbit fish (Siganus fuscescens), scarbreast tuskfish (Choerodon azurio), bluestriped angelfish (Chaetodontoplus septentrionalis), balloon fish (Diodon holocanthus), and flag fish (Goniistius zonatus) at study sites.

In this study, the AHP (analytic hierarchy process) technique was used to analyze the risk of expected risk factors and fishing possibilities during gillnet fishing within the floating offshore wind farms (floating OWF). For this purpose, the risks that may occur during gillnet fishing within the floating offshore wind farms were defined as collisions, entanglements, and snags. In addition, the risk factors that cause these risks were classified into three upper risk factors and ten sub risk factors, and the three alternatives to gillnet fishing available within the floating OWF were classified and a hierarchy was established. Lastly, a survey was conducted targeting fisheries and marine experts and the response results were analyzed. As a result of the analysis, among the top risk factors, the risk was the greatest when laying fishing gear. The risk of the sub factors for each upper risk was found to be the highest at the berthing (mooring), the final hauling of fishing net, and the laying of the bottom layer net. Based on the alternatives, the average of the integrated risk rankings showed that allowing full navigation/fisheries had the highest risk. As a result of the final ranking analysis of the integrated risk, the overall ranking of allowing navigation/fisheries in areas where bottom layer nets were laid was ranked the first when moving vessels within the floating OWF was analyzed as the lowest integrated risk ranking of the 30th at the ban on navigation/fisheries. Through this, navigation was analyzed to be possible while it was analyzed that the possibility of gillnet fishing within the floating OWF was not high.

The United States enforces the seafood import regulations so-called the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), and by 2023, all exports of aquatic products and processed fish products by fisheries which have not obtained an “Comparability Finding” from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration will be completely banned. Therefore, to respond to the US MMPA, it is critical to identify technologies and methods used in worldwide for reducing bycatch of marine mammals. In particular, marine mammals are frequently caught in five fisheries (trawl, gill net, trap, stow net and set net) in Korea, which is facing a great challenge. This study presented bycatch reduction methods by five fisheries, classified the methods by country, and suggested appropriate reduction methods which can be applied in Korea.

This study analyzes the importance and implementation of countermeasures to reduce safety accidents that may occur during fishing in coastal gillnet fishing. Safety accidents that may occur in coastal gillnet fishing were classified into 56 measurement items in six areas: slips and trips, contact with machinery, falls, struck by object, musculoskeletal symptoms, and electrical shock. 35 fishermen belonging to coastal gillnet associations in Tongyeong and Namhae were selected as samples, and the importance and implementation of the proposed measurement items were investigated in the field. In addition, the results were evaluated visually by IPA analysis. As a result of the analysis, the importance of struck by object was the highest, and the implementation of slips and trips was the highest. On the other hand, prevention of musculoskeletal damage was found to be the lowest in both importance and implementation. The area with the most significant difference in importance and implementation by the classified area for measurement items was struck by object, and the area with the minor difference was slips and trips. Among the measurement items, the importance is highly recognized, but there are items with low implementation. To improve their level of implementation, countermeasures such as continuous education, economic support, and structural change of fishing boats should be prepared; moreover, policy support activities for implementation should be carried out.

We analyzed work safety risk factors, which are likely to occur during fishing in gillnet fishing vessels using the written verdict of the Korea Maritime Safety Tribunal from 2016 to 2020, and considered work safety management. Of the total of 37 fatal accidents, three cases in the East Sea, six cases in the South Sea, and 28 cases in the West Sea were very frequent. The accident rate per vessel by sea area (%) was 0.08% in East Sea, 0.12% in South Sea, and 0.40% in the West Sea. Based on the East Sea, the number of fatal accidents was 1.6 times higher in the South Sea and 5.4 times higher in the West Sea. Six cases (16.2%) occurred during departure and preparation for fishing in the fishing process, and all other 31 cases (83.8%) occurred during fishing operation. In the order of accident types, 21 cases (56.8%) of being struck by object, eight cases (21.6%) of contact with machinery and six cases (16.2%) of falls from height were found to be fatal accidents in gillnet fishery. Human factors, such as fishers’ carelessness and negligent safety management by captain accounted for 27 cases (73.0%) of the main cause, and 35 cases (94.6%) of the secondary cause. In addition to human factors such as fisher’s carelessness and negligent safety management by captain, mechanical factors, environmental factors and management factors must be improved together to reduce human casualties. These results are expected to be utilized as basic data for reducing safety accidents during the work of fishers.

As a series of fundamental researches on the development of an automatic identification monitoring system for fishing gear. Firstly, the study on the installation method of automated identification buoy for the coastal improvement net fishing net with many loss problems on the west coast was carried out. Secondly, the study was conducted find out how to install an automatic identification buoy for coastal gill net which has the highest loss rate among the fisheries. GPS for fishing was used six times in the coastal waters around Seogwipo city in Jeju Island to determine the developmental status and underwater behavior to conduct a field survey. Next, a questionnaire was administered in parallel on the type of loss and the quantity and location of fishing gear to be developed and the water transmitter. In the field experiment, the data collection was possible from a minimum of 13 hours, ten minutes to a maximum of 20 hours and ten minutes using GPS, identifying the development status and underwater behavior of the coastal gillnet fishing gear. The result of the survey showed that the loss of coastal net fishing gear was in the following order: net (27.3%), full fishing gear (24.2%), buoys, and anchors (18.2%). The causes were active algae (50.0%), fish catches (33.3%) and natural disasters (12.5%). To solve this problem, the installation method is to attach one and two electronic buoys to top of each end of the fishing gear, and one underwater transmitter at both ends of the float line connected to the anchor. By identifying and managing abnormal conditions such as damage or loss of fishing gear due to external factors such as potent algae and cutting of fishing gear, loss of fishing gear can be reduced. If the lost fishing gear is found, it will be efficiently collected.