Sustainable fishing net adds illuminated exits for young fish

Overfishing of the planet’s oceans is one of those environmental issues that flies under the radar of most, but remains a huge problem for nations that rely on sea life for their food supply. In an attempt to address a part of this problem, a British design student created a netting solution that could save millions of fish species in danger of disappearing forever.
 
Created by Royal College of Art graduate Dan Watson, the SafetyNet is a specially constructed fishing net that features a series of illuminated rings designed to allow fish that have not fully matured to escape back into the ocean. According to Watson’s research, up to half of the fish caught in the North Sea near the UK are too young to bring to market and are thrown back into the ocean dead, leading to a rapid depletion of the overall fish stock. Watson’s hope is that the SafetyNet might put a dent in that number by saving millions of unnecessarily destroyed fish.
 
The battery-powered construction is set to be put into limited trial use by the UK government in the near future. The SafetyNet was considered so innovative and well executed that it earned Watson this year’s James Dyson Award.