Not far off the islands of the Republic of Vanuatu, a deserted trawl-fishing net undulates in the azure tropical Pacific. No one knows whom it belonged to or how it was lost, but it has twisted around a delicate garden of coral and damaged the reef.
It is just one example among at least 640,000 metric tons of fishing gear that goes missing at sea each year, according to the United Nations. Known as "ghost gear," it gums up ship propellers, entangles passing whales and settles atop sensitive habitats.
Image: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration diver Russell Reardon removes derelict fishing gear from a coral reef at Midway Atoll in the Pacific Ocean. Credit: NOAA
