Mabo
Envisioning Future of Sustainable Fishing

Duration
2 months / 2023

Supervisors
Aakash Patel

Project tags
Design Research, Systems Mapping, Horizon Scanning, Roadmapping, Prototyping, Testing

Overfishing, habitat loss, and bycatch threaten marine life and food security. Bottom trawling destroys ecosystems, and illegal fishing depletes stocks. Weak regulations and climate change worsen the crisis, demanding urgent action.

MABO’s buoys with hyper-spectral imaging track fishing, habitat health and ocean conditions in real-time. This data helps policymakers and fisheries enforce sustainable practices and protect marine life.

Habitat loss, overfishing and bycatch are major challenges to sustainable fishing. Destructive practices like bottom trawling destroy marine habitats, reducing breeding grounds and fish populations. Overfishing depletes stocks faster than they can recover, threatening food security and economic stability.

Bycatch results in the unnecessary killing of non-target species, disrupting ecosystems and endangering marine biodiversity. Without strong regulations, marine protected areas and selective fishing methods, these issues will continue to push fisheries toward collapse, endangering both marine life and human livelihoods.

This diagram shows Maximum Sustainable Yield (MSY), the balance between fishing pressure and fish stock for long-term sustainability.

Overfishing exceeds MSY, causing declining fish stocks, ecosystem damage and economic instability.

Too little fishing reduces food and income. Sustainable fishing requires balancing catch to prevent depletion while supporting livelihoods.

The self-defeating cycle of unsustainable fishing exacerbates overfishing, ecosystem collapse, economic instability and weak regulation, perpetuating further depletion of marine resources

The derived problem statement is:

‘In the future how can we ensure sustainable fishing practices through dynamic oceanography for mitigating the impact of habitat loss?’

The Future Biographies method helped in defining long-term goals for sustainable fishing, through perspectives of fishers, governments, indigenous communities and conservationists. It balanced marine conservation, economy and responsible fishing.

By exploring aspirations and challenges, it shaped policies, governance and conservation. This approach created a clear roadmap to tackle overfishing, habitat loss and climate change, ensuring thriving fisheries for future generations.

This roadmap was created by integrating technological, ecological, political and social interventions to achieve sustainable fishing by 2050. These strategies are guided by weak signals, trends and impact range, progressing from policy reforms and monitoring to climate adaptation, ecosystem restoration and resilient fisheries for long-term sustainability.

MABO (Marine Biodiversity Observation System)

By 2050, sustainable fishing will rely on highly monitored Fisheries Zones, enabled by the Marine Biodiversity Observation System (MABO), a network of interconnected buoys. These buoys, equipped with hyper-spectral imaging, will capture real-time ocean data, monitoring overfishing, bycatch, illegal fishing and habitat health through a public-private partnership.

By continuously monitoring and sharing ocean data, MABO will empower fisheries to adopt sustainable practices, protect ecosystems, and ensure a resilient future for marine life.

MABO will track ocean pH levels, storm surges, and acidification, supporting:

Scenario 1: How the buoys help in precision fishing

This roadmap was created by integrating technological, ecological, political and social interventions to achieve sustainable fishing by 2050. These strategies are guided by weak signals, trends and impact range, progressing from policy reforms and monitoring to climate adaptation, ecosystem restoration and resilient fisheries for long-term sustainability.

Real-time Fish Monitoring

Buoys continuously scan the ocean, detecting fish density, species type and ecosystem conditions using advanced imaging and sensors

Data Transmission to Ships & Observatories

The buoys send real-time data to fishing vessels and monitoring stations, ensuring accurate fish population tracking

Observation & Decision Making

Fisheries and regulators analyse data to determine when and where fishing is sustainable, preventing overfishing and habitat destruction

Sustainable Fishing Operations

Ships follow buoy data to target healthy fish stocks, reducing bycatch, waste and environmental damage while optimising fishing efficiency

Scenario 2: Hyper-spectral Imaging for Ocean Monitoring

These interfaces showcase hyper-spectral imaging capabilities within the Marine Biodiversity Observation System (MABO), enabling advanced monitoring of fish populations, vessel activities and ocean health. By combining real-time tracking and hyper-spectral imaging, MABO enhances precision fishing, biodiversity monitoring and fisheries enforcement, ensuring sustainable ocean management.

Vessel Tracking & Fishing Events

Displays real-time vessel tracking over a mapped ocean region, monitoring fishing routes, loitering events and encounters within Fisheries Zones

Species Identification & Health Analysis

Uses hyper-spectral imaging to capture biological signatures of fish species, revealing age, health and population movement for sustainable fishing

Scenario 3: Monitoring Marine Health with Hyper-spectral Imaging

This scenario focuses on monitoring ocean health and biodiversity using hyper-spectral imaging and real-time data analysis. The Marine Biodiversity Observation System (MABO) buoys continuously track coral bleaching, water quality and habitat degradation, ensuring early detection of environmental threats. By integrating continuous monitoring, spectral imaging and AI-driven analysis, this system empowers conservationists, policymakers and the fishing industry to make data-driven decisions, ensuring healthy marine ecosystems for the future.

Live Monitoring & Species Identification

Real-time imaging and AI-powered segmentation track marine species health, population trends and biodiversity, detecting behavioural changes and aiding conservation efforts.

Coral Health Analysis

Hyper-spectral imaging detects coral bleaching stages by analysing colour variations and spectral signatures, while real-time data on ocean temperature, pH and wave speed helps assess coral resilience and predict future bleaching

Fishing Gear & Habitat Impact Assessment

The system identifies lost or harmful fishing gear, tracking entanglement risks and habitat damage, while lifecycle and ownership data help enforce sustainable fishing practices