LED technology to increase the purse seine fishery performance

The catch efficiency of LED lamps in the purse seine fishery as well as their performances from the environmental sustainability point of view has been tested in the Adriatic Sea. In September and October 2020, a white light LED (LWH) configuration and a blue light LED (LBLU) were tested alongside the incandescent lamp (INC) by means of 20 experimental trials characterized by 44 comparisons among tested lighting systems. Catches composed for over 98% of the total biomass by anchovies (Engraulis encrasicolus) were compared through Catch Per Unit Effort (CPUE) in terms of energy (kg/kWh) and fuel (kg/l) consumption and other impact indicators.Fuel consumptions performances of the white LED light showed a reduction of about 2 times compared to the incandescent lamp. The blue LED light showed the best efficiency according to all indicators compared in the analysis. CO2 emissions showed the highest median estimated value for the INC lamp (50 kg of CO2), which is double than that emitted by the LWH (median value 29 kg) and approximately 8 times higher than that of the LBLU (median value 6 kg). The results indicate consistent benefits that this technology could provide to the purse seine fishery in term of yields and mitigation of environmental impacts. Further investigations should be carried out on the adoption of the LED technology by the entire purse seine fleet in the Adriatic Sea assessing potential changes in the fishing pressure on the small pelagics’ stocks.