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Banishing ghost gear in the Djerba lagoon

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Mabrouka Khedir | Julia Mielke
September 29, 2026

Demand for blue crab from Tunisia is soaring, but derelict fishing gear is damaging the Djerba lagoon and threatening local livelihoods. Fishermen, scientists and volunteers are joining forces to tackle ‘ghost gear'.

Blue crabs have become an important source of income for fishers in Tunisia, but the traps used to catch them are creating another problem. Hundreds of thousands of lost or discarded traps are estimated to lie in the sea, where they can cause "ghost fishing" and damage carbon-storing seagrass, ultimately impacting the climate. Scientists and fishers are testing GPS tracking, trap recovery and recycling to protect marine life.

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