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Oceanic plastic pollution caused by Danish seine fishing in Norway
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Researchers estimated that Danish seine fishing in Norway alone contributes 77 to 97 tons of plastic to the sea annually from rope wear caused by dragging gear along the seabed, and extrapolating globally, all fly dragging and anchor seining generates approximately 311 tons of plastic pollution per year. The study identifies fishing gear abrasion as a significant but underinvestigated source of marine microplastic contamination.
Wear and tear on fishing gear is a sparsely investigated source of microplastic pollution in the sea. In Norway, Danish seine ropes and trawls are the fishing gears that contribute most to this pollution. The main reason for this pollution is that the seine ropes are dragged along the seabed over a considerable distance, creating a friction force that results in high ropes wear. This note reports the findings after examining the wear of Danish seine ropes used in Norwegian fisheries. The results show that, in Norway alone, an average of 77 to 97 tons of plastic will be added to the sea annually due to this specific fishing gear. Aggregated to include all fly dragging, anchor seining, and pair seining globally, this number is estimated to be about 311 tons per year.
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Microplastics Derived from Commercial Fishing Activities
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Researchers estimated that ordinary commercial fishing activities in Norway generate approximately 208 tonnes of microplastics annually from rope abrasion and gear wear, extrapolating to roughly 4,622 tonnes globally per year across gear types including trawls, gillnets, longlines, pots, and Danish seine.
Microplastic pollution from fishing gear: Emerging risks and management pathways
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Fishing gear like nets and trawls sheds an estimated 200 tons of microplastic into Norwegian waters every year, with certain fishing methods (Danish seine and trawl nets) responsible for most of the pollution. These plastics can work their way into the marine food chain—and ultimately onto our plates through seafood—but this review suggests switching to biodegradable gear materials could meaningfully cut emissions, though doing so will require rethinking how fishing rights and quotas are currently managed.
Microplastic emissions from fishing ropes: Quantification, characteristics, and implications for marine pollution
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Researchers quantified microplastics generated from the mechanical abrasion of polypropylene-based fishing ropes and found that over 92% of released particles were non-fiber fragments rather than fibers. Each additional kilogram of hauling weight produced roughly 1.4 extra microplastic particles per meter of rope. Global estimates suggest that fishing rope abrasion alone releases approximately 768 trillion microplastic particles annually, highlighting fishing gear as a substantial and often overlooked source of marine microplastic pollution.
Reducing plastic pollution caused by demersal fisheries
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Bottom trawling and demersal seining fishing gear steadily shed microplastics into the ocean as they wear down, and in Norway alone they account for over 70% of demersal fish catches while also being among the top sources of fishery-related microplastic pollution. Switching to biodegradable polymer alternatives for these nets could reduce marine plastic litter, even if end-of-life incineration rather than recycling remains the likely disposal route.
Potential microplastic release from the maritime industry: Abrasion of rope
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Researchers quantified microplastic production from maritime rope use, finding that older, more worn ropes shed significantly more microplastic fibers during hauling, identifying the maritime industry as an underestimated source of ocean plastic pollution.
Research digests by email
When a large batch of papers lands in the Atlas, we read through it and send a short write-up of what stood out.