Last Tuesday, 7 April 2015, the joint ACCOBAMS-GFCM project on mitigating interactions between endangered species and fishing activities was officially launched on the occasion of a kick-off meeting held in Tunis (Tunisia) at the premises of the International Center for Environmental Technologies (CITET). The meeting was by the Secretariats of both partner organizations and by the national coordinators in charge of leading surveys in Tunisia, Morocco, Algeria, Spain and France.

This two-year project financed by the MAVA Foundation will attempt to assess the extent of interactions between endangered marine species (i.e. cetaceans, sea turtles, seabirds, sharks) and selected fisheries inthe Western Mediterranean Sea. The project also foresees the testing of fishing techniques aimed at mitigating such interactions as well as awareness-raising campaigns and pilot activities with the participation of fishworkers.