Global Fishing Watch uses digital monitoring to curb illegal fishing

Tech-environmentalist group SkyTruth, non-profit organization Oceana, and Google have unveiled Global Fishing Watch, a free tool that allows people to track fishing activity worldwide, in a bid to curb the exploitation of marine life. A press release on the Google Maps blog explains that the system uses radio signals emitted by large vessels through the Automatic Identification System, or AIS. Satellites and other terrestrial antenna pick up the signals and store them in a database. An algorithm applied to the data uses vessel movements to determine what type of ship and fishing gear are being utilized. Ship positions are delayed by 72 hours, but can be tracked from as far back as January of 2012. Information is displayed on an interactive Google Earth map, and includes each country’s exclusive economic zones and protected areas, as well as the individual records and identities of more than 35,000 fishing boats. Users need only to have an internet connection to access the free data and remotely monitor any ships that could be fishing illegally. The system is far from perfect. Smaller vessels that don’t require the use of the Automatic Identification System or AIS can’t be tracked, according to Scientific American. The AIS itself can report false locations when tampered with by a crew trying to mask illegal activities. ----------------------------------------­­---------------------------------------­-­---------------- Next Animation Studio’s News Direct service provides daily, high-quality, informative 3D news animations that fill in for missing footage and help viewers understand breaking news stories or in-depth features on science, technology, and health. Sign up for a free trial of News Direct's news animations at http://newsdirect.nextanimation.com.tw/Reuters.aspx To subscribe to News Direct or for more info, please visit: http://newsdirect.nextanimation.com.tw/Index.aspx