The use of illegal fishing nets has repeatedly come to light in the UAE. Such nets are counted among the top causes of overfishing. Major General Mohammad Al Merri, chairman of the fishermen's cooperative association of Dubai, said the large nets not only trap more fish but boats are often unable to accommodate the bigger catch.
Al Merri said he had encountered abandoned nets many times on fishing trips.
"The nets get too full and the fishermen are not able to pull it and so they leave it — full of fish — behind. It is a nuisance for us. When we find them we have to remove them."
At other times, Al Merri explained, the large nets heavy with fish sink to the ocean floor and get trapped in artificial reefs.
The recent incident involving dead stingrays that washed up on a Ras Al Khaimah beach last week could be attributed to overfishing and the use of illegal nets. Dr Saif Al Gais, executive director of the Environmental Protection and Development Authority of Ras Al Khaimah, said that the fish had been cast away by fishermen who caught them using incorrect and irresponsible fishing methods.
Al Gais said that fishermen had probably disposed of the stingrays because they were not very popular among consumers.
Stingrays are marine predators that help maintain the balance of marine ecosystems and thrive in sandy seabeds, which is why they are found in abundance in Ras Al Khaimah.
