Fisherman’s Gillnet Confiscated by Fisheries Department

The Fisheries Department on Tuesday confiscated an old derelict gillnet in the vicinity of the Bird’s Isle area of Belize City. According to the Department, the gill net did not have a registration tag as required by law and no fish or any marine animal were found entangled in the gill net. Fisheries officials confirmed that the net was set by minors a couple days prior. The law prohibits traps like gillnets to be placed within a distance of half a mile from any settlement. Environmental watchdogs such as OCEANA Belize and Belize Federation of Fishers are asking that the use of gill nets be banned as it is more destructive to marine life than functional.