The UAE’s ban on nets that fish indiscriminately and are more likely to become lost at sea could not have come soon enough.
That is according to experts who say abandoned fishing gear is posing almost as great a threat to marine life as plastic debris.
Diving instructors and environmental activists have said that unclear regulations and difficulty monitoring fishing practices has caused abandoned fishing equipment — or ghost gear- to wreak havoc on the country’s marine environment.
“It has now become one of the biggest problem for our ocean together with plastic,” said Michela Colella of Divers Down UAE, a diving centre in Fujairah.
“The biggest issue is that it looks like there are no regulations. It has also become more common to put these nets very close to the shore and the nets are not marked.”
Placing nets closer to shore poses a danger to swimmers and can strangle corals reefs which provide a home to at least 25 per cent of all marine species.
“I was recently diving in the Khor Fakkan area and I saw a turtle with metres of fishing nets around her neck and dead rays caught in abandoned nets,” Ms Colella said.
This week, the UAE strengthened its campaign to preserve marine life by banning the use of gargoor nets — a domed fishing cage traditionally used in the Gulf — in Abu Dhabi waters and launching a 12-year plan that aims to restore the country’s depleted fish stocks through stronger legislation, research and building artificial reefs.
The ban was likely prompted by a series of high profile fishing incidents, including the deaths of five dugongs last year, which are protected under UAE law and had become entangled in fishing nets.
Ahmed Al Hashmi, acting executive director, terrestrial and marine biodiversity sector, at Environment Agency — Abu Dhabi said gargoor cages were contributing to the mounting issue of abandoned gear in the UAE’s waters.
“We recently did a clean-up campaign and people who dived also saw gargoors and nets. Dugongs and sea turtles can get entangled in nets,” he said.
“During our last survey with research vessels, we noticed that in every trip we could have taken up old gargoors or inactive gargoors in most of the locations.”
Like other nets, the gargoors are deposited in one location but strong winds, such as the shemal, and currents can cause them to become lost.
“The problem is that they accumulate a lot of fish inside — some are endangered fish and found rarely in these waters. It is like a dead cage. Everything enters.
“The other problem with those traps is that they last a long time and will not disappear in a few months,” he said.
Made of durable, synthetic fibres, ghost gear can take up to 600 years to break down and continue to “ghost fish”, drown seabirds and smother reefs for many years after they are lost.
Abandoned nets are a global issue with ocean currents carrying them long distances.
The UN Environment Programme estimates that between 600,000 and 800,000 metric tonnes of ghost gear enters the world’s oceans each year.
According to World Animal Protection, an international non-profit animal welfare organisation, more than 100,000 whales, dolphins, seals and turtles get caught in abandoned or lost fishing nets, lines and traps each year.
Proposed solutions to tackling the crisis include biodegradable netting, GPS tracking and offering incentives to fishermen to return their nets at the end of their use.
The Ministry of Climate Change and the Environment banned the dumping of nets in the sea or on the beach, saying fishermen must secure one end of the net to the boat.
“The penalty for discarding fishing gear in the sea is a written warning for first-time offenders, a Dh1,000 fine for second-time offenders, and a one-month suspension of the boat license for third-timers,” said Mohammed Al Zaabi, director of Environmental Compliance at the ministry.
However, illegal fishing remains an issue as sometimes fishermen will dump their equipment to evade detection and penalties.
“In other countries there have been initiatives of tagging gear with GPS devices to help in the fight against ghost gear. This is becoming more and more affordable,” said Ms Colella.
“Technology has evolved but when we talk about fishing nets it has only evolved only in terms of becoming better at trapping fish and not in reducing the harmful impact to the ocean.”
She suggested measures be taken locally to reduce the damage caused by the nets once they are lost in the sea.
“You can make fishing nets more biodegradable or incorporate biodegrable panels into traps so they no longer catch and kill animals,” she said.
“A ghost net can kill marine life for centuries if it’s not discovered.”
Results
2.30pm: Expo 2020 Dubai – Conditions (PA) Dh80,000 (Dirt) 1,600m; Winner: Barakka, Ray Dawson (jockey), Ahmad bin Harmash (trainer)
3.05pm: Now Or Never – Maiden (TB) Dh82,500 (Turf) 1,600m; Winner: One Idea, Andrea Atzeni, Doug Watson
3.40pm: This Is Our Time – Handicap (TB) Dh82,500 (D) 1,600m; Winner: Perfect Balance, Tadhg O’Shea, Bhupat Seemar
4.15pm: Visit Expo 2020 – Handicap (TB) Dh87,500 (T) 1,600m; Winner: Kaheall, Richard Mullen, Salem bin Ghadayer
4.50pm: The World In One Place – Handicap (TB) Dh95,000 (T) 1.900m; Winner: Castlebar, Adrie de Vries, Helal Al Alawi
5.25pm: Vision – Handicap (TB) Dh95,000 (D) 1,200m; Winner: Shanty Star, Richard Mullen, Rashed Bouresly
6pm: Al Wasl Plaza – Handicap (TB) Dh95,000 (T) 1,200m; Winner: Jadwal, Dane O’Neill, Doug Watson
Poacher
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Asia Cup 2018 final
Who: India v Bangladesh
When: Friday, 3.30pm, Dubai International Stadium
Watch: Live on OSN Cricket HD
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
F1 The Movie
Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Rating: 4/5
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
What can victims do?
Always use only regulated platforms
Stop all transactions and communication on suspicion
Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)
Report to local authorities
Warn others to prevent further harm
Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
What are the main cyber security threats?
Cyber crime - This includes fraud, impersonation, scams and deepfake technology, tactics that are increasingly targeting infrastructure and exploiting human vulnerabilities.
Cyber terrorism - Social media platforms are used to spread radical ideologies, misinformation and disinformation, often with the aim of disrupting critical infrastructure such as power grids.
Cyber warfare - Shaped by geopolitical tension, hostile actors seek to infiltrate and compromise national infrastructure, using one country’s systems as a springboard to launch attacks on others.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
'The Lost Daughter'
Director: Maggie Gyllenhaal
Starring: Olivia Colman, Jessie Buckley, Dakota Johnson
Rating: 4/5
Gothia Cup 2025
4,872 matches
1,942 teams
116 pitches
76 nations
26 UAE teams
15 Lebanese teams
2 Kuwaiti teams
The five pillars of Islam
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Xpanceo
Started: 2018
Founders: Roman Axelrod, Valentyn Volkov
Based: Dubai, UAE
Industry: Smart contact lenses, augmented/virtual reality
Funding: $40 million
Investor: Opportunity Venture (Asia)
The specs: 2018 BMW R nineT Scrambler
Price, base / as tested Dh57,000
Engine 1,170cc air/oil-cooled flat twin four-stroke engine
Transmission Six-speed gearbox
Power 110hp) @ 7,750rpm
Torque 116Nm @ 6,000rpm
Fuel economy, combined 5.3L / 100km
The specs
Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
Power: 620hp from 5,750-7,500rpm
Torque: 760Nm from 3,000-5,750rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed dual-clutch auto
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh1.05 million ($286,000)
Sholto Byrnes on Myanmar politics
Brief scores:
Juventus 3
Dybala 6', Bonucci 17', Ronaldo 63'
Frosinone 0
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
How to turn your property into a holiday home
- Ensure decoration and styling – and portal photography – quality is high to achieve maximum rates.
- Research equivalent Airbnb homes in your location to ensure competitiveness.
- Post on all relevant platforms to reach the widest audience; whether you let personally or via an agency know your potential guest profile – aiming for the wrong demographic may leave your property empty.
- Factor in costs when working out if holiday letting is beneficial. The annual DCTM fee runs from Dh370 for a one-bedroom flat to Dh1,200. Tourism tax is Dh10-15 per bedroom, per night.
- Check your management company has a physical office, a valid DTCM licence and is licencing your property and paying tourism taxes. For transparency, regularly view your booking calendar.
Results
5.30pm: Maiden Dh165,000 (Turf) 1,600m; Winner: Al Battar, Mickael Barzalona (jockey), Salem bin Ghadayer (trainer).
6.05pm: Maiden Dh165,000 (Dirt) 1,200m; Winner: Good Fighter, Richard Mullen, Satish Seemar.
6.40pm: Handicap Dh185,000 (T) 1,200m; Winner: Way Of Wisdom, Tadhg O’Shea, Satish Seemar.
7.15pm: Handicap Dh170,000 (D) 2,200m; Winner: Immortalised, Tadhg O’Shea, Satish Seemar.
7.50pm: Handicap Dh185,000 (T) 2,000m; Winner: Franz Kafka, James Doyle, Simon Crisford.
8.25pm: Handicap Dh185,000 (D) 1,200m; Winner: Mayadeen, Connor Beasley, Doug Watson.
9pm: Handicap Dh185,000 (T) 1,600m; Winner: Chiefdom, Mickael Barzalona, Salem bin Ghadayer
CHELSEA'S NEXT FIVE GAMES
Mar 10: Norwich(A)
Mar 13: Newcastle(H)
Mar 16: Lille(A)
Mar 19: Middlesbrough(A)
Apr 2: Brentford(H)
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